Chapter XVI, Tears for Allah
A/N: Special thanks to Janlaw for the legal info.
? Local _? Zulu
Near Ed Da'ein
Southern Darfur, Sudan
Lutfi 'Muhannad' Treshchenko looked around at the ruins of what used to be Abdullah Karim's villa. It was obvious that Karim left in a hurry with whomever he had hired to kill the bodyguards that Muhannad had assigned to him.
"They tried to burn these documents upstairs before they left," a young Saudi named Waleed reported to Umar bin Ayyubi, Treshchenko's second in command.
"Let me see them," bin Ayyubi said to Waleed who turned the burnt and brown remains over to him.
Umar passed them to another man who put them between two pieces of glass and held them up to the sunlight "More financial papers. It will some time, but I think I can decipher what they say," he reported.
Bin Ayyubi merely nodded. He was still in a state of shock over what had happened.
xxxvixx
Muhannad was walking around on the upper level of Karim's villa, looking at the carnage. As he walked through the various rooms, his mind flashed back to another time when saw such death and destruction…
xxxxvixx~~~~~~flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~xxxvixx
Groznyy, December 1994
A younger Lutfi Muhannad Treshchenko was running through the debris strewn upper level of an apartment building- the three men he had been with had just been killed by a Russian tank's machineguns.
Lutfi!
He turned at the sound of the voice. It was Captain Volchikov, his company commander in the Chechen National Guard. He was screaming at Muhannad above the din of explosions and machinegun fire.
Lutfi!
He waved frantically at Muhannad as large caliber bullets tore up the rooms behind him.
Lutfi, come on, there is nothing you can do for them now!
Lutfi looked back at bullet shattered rooms and broken bodies and then back at his CO.
Kapitan! Shouldn't we even try!? he heard himself ask.
Stashiy Leytenant Faris Volchikov shook his head and waved at young Lutfi frantically.
They are dead, Starzy Serzhant! We must get out of here if we are going to survive!
xxxvixx~~~~~~~~end flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~xxxvixx
Treshchenko looked at Fahd, who he had not noticed standing there before. The young Sudanese Lieutenant had found Karim's villa in its current state.
"Where are Sergeant Haslim's men?" Muhannad asked bluntly.
"We have them detained at a secure location," the young Lieutenant reported.
"Find out what you can from them and then dispose of them as you see fit," Treshchenko said emotionlessly.
Fahd was momentarily unnerved by this man's cold bloodedness, but then he recovered. "As you wish. What shall we do with the other…the bodies?"
"Take Servitov and his men to my helicopter. You may do what you wish with Sergeant Haslim and his men. And raze this building. I want nothing but debris left."
Fahd knew better than trying to point out the problems this action might cause. "Yes sir." His superiors would want answers as to why this was done, but he would figure out later how to dodge that bullet.
Umar bin Ayyubi caught up with Muhannad as he watched the soldiers load the Chechen bodies in the back of a waiting BTR-40 personnel carrier so they could be moved to the terrorist's Hind helicopter gunship waiting on a nearby rocky hill.
Umar came and stood beside the Chechen terrorist leader. "Lutfi, isn't it unwise to take Nabullah and the others with us? It is better to leave them here. They have served their purpose."
Treshchenko turned to the man simply known to many as 'The Taliban'. "My name is not Lutfi anymore, it is Muhannad…Lutfi died a long time ago. Misha and Nabullah were good soldiers and deserve to be honored. They died for our cause."
"What about our operation?" Umar persisted.
Muhannad gave his bothersome second in command an exasperated sigh. "For now, we tell our cell that was spearheading this operation, that it has been put on… hold."
Umar's eyebrows shot up toward the edge of his turban. "On hold? But we have been
planning-"
Muhannad Treshchenko used as kind a tone as he could muster. "Umar, Josef has been captured by the Russians, Macklin has disappeared. With Abdullah and that Russian pig Leveritinov having betrayed us, this operation as it stands now, has been severely compromised."
They watched as a Sundanese T-55 tank clattered up the villa driveway. This was Lieutenant Fahd's response to 'raze this building'.
Muhannad turned back to Umar. "Tell Sadik to inform our friends in SAVAT that they will have to continue their planning without us.
The tank, which had seen better days, was still lethal. Its turret swiveled toward the walls of the villa and its cannon belched an angry report. The impact of the 100 millimeter cannon's armor piercing and high explosive shells sent rocks and mortar flying as the wall crumpled. The tank, undeterred by the flying debris, stomped into the villa courtyard and began pummeling the house.
"So what do we do now?" the al Jihad second in command asked, seemingly at a loss to know what do next.
Muhannad, who had seemed at first to be mesmerized by the tank's destruction of the villa, turned back to 'The Taliban' and smiled. "Do? What do we do? Sadik is in America, my friend, and he tells me that by next winter he'll be able to pull off a terror attack on US soil. Our cell in Virginia is getting the necessary capital and vehicles they need for their mission." He clapped Umar on the shoulder. "When one operation stalls my friend, we simply switch to another…"
Muhannad walked to the armored truck followed by Umar, as he did, Muhannad's mind flashed back to a scene similar to the destruction he had just witnessed…
xxxvixx~~~~~~~~~~~~~flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~xxxvixx
A Russian T-72 tank was firing at a building
Then the tank was being hit and catching fire, the crew of the vehicle scrambling for safety.
A wounded member of the crew staggered away from his comrades, bleeding from his ears. Gospodin! Gospodin!
The wounded crewmember saw an assault rifle pointed at him. O Gospodi! Nyet!
xxxvixx~~~~~~~~~~~~~end flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~xxxvixx
1402 Local_1802 Zulu
Conference Room One
JAG Corps Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
"Thanks for agreeing to meet with us, Gunny," the Admiral said as they all sat down.
"Have you learned anything else on your end?" Harm asked.
Gibbs smiled. "Abinjinad is singing like the proverbial canary. His partner is like a clam, but what Amal has told us has more than made up for that. What did you learn?"
"Al Jihad heads Muhannad Treshchenko and Umar bin Ayyubi had recently green-lighted a plan to highjack or steal an American bomber or fighter bomber and use it in a terrorist operation," Harm revealed. "Al Khamid and Macklin were in charge of the plan."
Mac looked over at Gibbs, hoping he had something to add to what her partner had learned. "Abinjinad say anything about Macklin?"
Gibbs, unfortunately, shook his head. "Nope. No one seems to know anything about him or where he is. What have you two learned about him?"
Mac cleared her throat. The information she had was sketchy, but she guessed it was better than nothing. "al Khamid has only admitted that Loren Singer worked with him and Macklin, but he doesn't know where Macklin is, and he didn't know Loren Singer had died.
Harm added what he had learned from Sturgis' and Mattoni's JAGMan investigation. "Yare and al din Ga'al were the original architects of the operation, but Treshchenko put al Khamid and Macklin in charge because of their contacts and expertise.
Gibbs shot the aviator/lawyer a questioning look. "Expertise?"
Harm elaborated. "Macklin had begun dating a disaffected naval officer-at this point we don't know if she, Singer, was truly disaffected or if was just going along with their plan as part of her cover. Al Khamid knew my half-brother Sergei and thought that he might be able to put him touch with pilots in the Russian air force looking to make a few extra bucks."
"Yare was incensed about being thrown off the operation and went back to Somalia with al din Ga'al. Treshchenko talked them into working on the financial side of the operation," the Light Colonel added.
Gibbs nodded because that actually dovetailed with what he was going to say next. "SEALs just captured arms dealer Ioakim Leveritinov and al Jihad financial backer Abdullah Karim." The announcement that SEALs had been involved in the capture got a smile from AJ. Gibbs continued. "Both admitted they were in on this operation."
"What kind of planes were they looking at?" Harm asked. It seemed like an innocuous question.
The answer he got was far from it. "According to our Agents in the Los Angeles office, they were looking at B-52's, B-1's, F-111's and F-117's. This was confirmed when the SEALs raided Abdullah Karim's villa in Sudan."
Harm and Mac looked at each other, speechless. Until this moment they thought maybe the terrorists were looking at stealing fighter-bomber version of a Tomcat or Hornet. Bad, but plans to hijack these aircraft were not unheard of. But they never expected to hear about a plot to steal or hijack a strategic or a stealth bomber.
"You're pulling our leg, Gunny," AJ said, the disbelief evident in his voice.
Gibbs sighed. "I wish I was, Admiral."
"Were they going to fly it into a building like the 9-11 terrorists did?" Mac asked, her voice still showing evidence of her astonishment at the audaciousness of their plan.
Gibbs wondered if that was what they had planned to do as well. "All that was found at the villa was information pointing to their need to secure an American or NATO bomber or stealth fighter bomber for a terrorist operation."
"Then Macklin is the key," Harm said with conviction.
Gibbs nodded. "Yep, they find Macklin and they find out what exactly al Jihad was planning."
The two star's eyebrows rose in surprise. "They? Who are they? And what about your team, Gunny? I thought the DC Major Case Response Team had the lead on this."
It was clear the gray haired NCIS agent didn't like the change either. "The Director has passed this case on to our Los Angeles office which has more experience with these kinds of situations. I'm hoping though, Admiral, you'll share with me anything that your office finds."
AJ nodded. "You can bet on that, Gunny How's the Fuentes case coming?"
"We're chasing down several leads. Nothing solid yet," he reported.
The JAG looked at him thoughtfully. "Commander Rabb informed me that at this point, he doesn't think JAG needs to be directly involved in this case."
Gibbs nodded his appreciation to Harm. Who gave him a nod back. "I'll keep you in the loop on what happens."
Mac traded a soft look with Harm and then looked back at Gibbs. "Thanks Gibbs," she said, giving him a smile.
1105 Local_1805 Zulu
NCIS Offices
Los Angeles, California
"Hetty?" Lara Macy's voice was sharp and clear on the intercom.
Hetty depressed the 'push to talk' button on her intercom. "Yes, Lara?" she replied distractedly as she read through yet another after action report from Mike Renko on his latest undercover operation.
"You might want to come down to Ops. There's something you need to see."
There was an urgency in Lara's voice that Hetty didn't like. Without responding, she got up and walked down the hallway to the stairwell and then down into Ops.
"What's going on, Ms. Macy?" she asked as came down the stairs into the NCIS operations area. Eric Beale moved the satellite image from his workstation to the large Smart board on left hand side wall of the center.
"NSA picked this up a few moments ago," Eric said using his mouse to zoom in on the image.
Though it was early evening, the infrared images clearly showed a Russian built T-55 tank demolishing what left of a large building, what looked like the remains of villa, in the desert. Even the palm trees that had surrounded it had been knocked down.
"Zoom in on that armored car over on the far right of the screen," Hetty ordered.
Lara and Eric traded a look and then Eric focused the image on the area Hetty wanted to see. Using special night cameras and thankfully because there was a full moon, they could all see another Russian built vehicle, this one a 1950's era four wheeled armored car with its doors open. At the back of the truck, two men manhandled a shroud covered stretcher. Standing beside them was a tall slender man with a shock of unruly gray hair dressed in black. To his side was a shorter turbaned and bearded gentleman wearing a full dishdasha.
Eric watched as Hetty's eyes narrowed and her mouth became a straight line.
"Do we have positive identification on these two?" she asked while continuing to study the screen.
"Uh yeah," Eric said looking a sheaf of papers on his desk and then back at her. "The tall one is Muhannad Treshchenko and shorter one is his second in command, Umar bin Ayyubi."
Hetty continued watching the two men as they moved around the armored car. "By how long did we miss them, Ms. Macy?"
"The SEAL team and Callen left Sudanese airspace 72 hours ago," the former MP Officer replied.
"They have a helicopter waiting for them," Eric reported about the two top members of al Jihad that were on the screen.
Hetty focused her full attention on the tech. "Alert the Navy the moment they prepare to become airborne, Mr. Beale."
"Yes Hetty," he replied as the NCIS Tech picked up the phone.
1130 Local _ 2130 Zulu
Windward Coast
Oahu, Hawaii
Navy Lieutenant, j.g., Catherine 'Cat' Rollins sighed, enjoying the luxury of her three day pass, courtesy of the Enterprise Captain 'for her quick thinking' that no doubt saved her friend, Lieutenant Steve McGarrett.
"Are you gonna lay on the towel all day?" Catherine raised her eyeglasses and squinted at a soaking wet bathing suit clad Steve McGarrett approaching her.
"Don't you dare drip all over me," she said throwing him a mock-scowl.
"Oh is that a challenge I hear?" he said advancing toward her. 'C'mon Catherine you've been lying on that towel all morning. When are going to join me in the water and have some fun?"
"For your information," she said with mock iciness as she turned over on her stomach, "I am having fun."
"Huh, looks boring to me," he said pretending to grouse as he sat down on the towel next to hers.
"You could make it less boring by rubbing some suntan lotion on my back," she replied giving him a winsome smile as she did.
Steve gave her a boyish leering grin in return. "All right." After he undid her top, Steve grabbed the bottle and squirted a generous amount into his hands and let it warm in the sun for moment before moving closer to her. "Though I'm not sure how this makes it any less boring."
Catherine snorted. "Just rub that glob you have in your hands on my back, smart guy, and you'll see," she hinted broadly to him.
"Okay intel guru," he said as he slowly began to massage the warm lotion onto her shoulders.
"That's intel goddess to you, hero of Ed Da'ein," she said savoring the motion of his hands. She really enjoyed his backrubs.
He shot her a look of mock horror. "Sh sh, that's hero of location classified, to you."
"Oh yeah, right," she murmured enjoying the moment, and then a thought struck her. "Hey, where are Sam and Freddie? They said they were going to meet us here."
"Michelle flew in for the weekend," Steve said referring to Sam's wife as he continued rubbing.
Catherine nodded her understanding about that. Sam wanted some alone time with his wife.
"What about Freddie?" she asked as another thought struck her.
He stopped rubbing. "Has a date with a cute little Air Force Technical Sergeant. Is that a problem?"
"Well, that just leaves you and me," she replied with straight face as she turned and looked at him, holding her top strategically in place.
He gave her a questioning look. "As I said before, is that a problem?"
"Oh no, not for me," she said grinning and settling back down on the towel.
"You tease," he said as he began rubbing below her shoulder blades.
"Flirt," she shot back.
They both were quiet for a moment listening to the waves as they crashed into the white sandy shore.
Catherine grabbed at her top again, turned over and looked up at Steve. "Is it true what Freddie said about the terrorists looking for a bomber to hijack?"
"Freddie has loose lips around you," Steve said sounding aggravated.
Catherine, who had retied her top, lifted her glasses and rolled her eyes at him as she sat up. "Oh, cut him some slack. We were both in on this operation. Besides, I am an intelligence analyst. I was going to find out one way or another."
"You mean you were going to pry it out of him?" he asked.
"No, I mean they brought me what you found at Karim's villa. Freddie just filled in the blanks for me," she replied.
"So how much do you know?"
"Enough to send chills down my spine," she said, dropping her playful tone.
He nodded, sympathetic to her comment. "Yeah. Me too," he said solemnly.
"So is it true?" she asked. There was a concern and seriousness in her voice that worried him.
"Yeah," he admitted. "It is."
"Do you think we've stopped them?"
"For the time being, but I'm sure that this is far from over," he said honestly.
She sighed and held his hand. "I was afraid you'd say something like that."
1530 Local_1930 Zulu
JAG Corps Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
Freshly shaved and having changed into a recently cleaned and pressed uniform, Bud made his way into the JAGC bullpen.
"Lieutenant! Welcome back sir!" Coates said beaming as she walked over to him. "I can't thank you enough for what did for Jason…and for me." As she said the last part, a blush began to rise on her cheeks.
Bud returned her embarrassed smile with one of his own. "Thank you, Coates. Is, uh, Commander Turner in his office?"
Jennifer turned her head toward Sturgis' office and then back to Bud. "Yes sir, he just got back from the courtroom. Do you want me to check and see if he is available?"
Now Bud looked over at Sturgis Turner's office. The former Public Affairs officer could see the Bubblehead working on his computer, occasionally glancing at an open folder on his desk.
"No. No, Coates," he said distractedly as he continued staring at the Bubblehead's office. "I'll take care of it, thanks."
Jen watched as Bud approached the closed door and knocked. She hoped they would be able to resolve the difficulties between them soon.
"Come," the stentorian voice of the preacher's son said thorough his closed door.
Bud opened the door. "Sir?"
Sturgis cut his eyes up to Bud. "Lieutenant," he said acknowledging his presence in a decidedly icy manner.
Undaunted, Bud ploughed ahead, closing the door behind him as he entered. "Sir, I know you're mad at me right now for going down to Corpus Christi-"
Sturgis stopped reading the legal brief he had in his hands and sighed heavily as he sat it down on his desk pad. "No Lieutenant, I'm not mad at you for going to Corpus Christi. I'm mad at you for not having the guts to tell me why you were going to Corpus Christi. It wasn't just to help Tiner, was it?"
"Not directly, sir, no," Bud admitted.
The former Dolphin was surprised by his admission. Well maybe they were going to get somewhere this time. "Then just tell me, Lieutenant. Why did you do it?"
"I'm not sure how to answer that, sir." Sturgis could see that Bud was ready to leave the moment any anger surfaced in their 'discussion'.
Sturgis sighed again. He really didn't want to get angry at Bud – it wasn't entirely his fault and yet, at the same time, he wished the boyish Lieutenant would just leave this matter alone. But since Bud had started to give him a reason, the Bubblehead had to know Bud's motives for what he did.
Sturgis looked levelly at Bud. "Just give me an honest answer, Lieutenant. That's all I ask."
Now it was Bud's turn to sigh. He seemed to stand taller as he talked. "Well, sir, when I first came to JAG Corps Headquarters, I was seen as the techno-wunderkid- that bumbling sweet guy that continued investigating after Agent Turque had all but convicted Commander Rabb of murdering Lieutenant Diane Schonke. Commander Rabb doesn't see me that way. He never has."
Sturgis was intrigued by this answer. "Go on,"
"When the Commander was arrested, I didn't believe it for a moment. The man I had first met when he came to the Seahawk to investigate Commander Arutti's death while we were on station in the Adriatic couldn't possibly have killed anyone. So I set out to prove that."
This time Sturgis didn't say anything. He had heard bits and pieces about what had happened on these two investigations, but sometimes with Harm it was better to hear the story told by an unbiased third party. He merely nodded for the Lieutenant to continue.
"Commander Krennick thought I was wasting my time until she saw what I had found. Then she paired me with Lieutenant Austin, and together we proved Commander Rabb couldn't possibly have killed Lieutenant Schonke. He never forgot that, sir."
When the former Dolphin didn't say anything, Bud Roberts took that as a sign to plow ahead.
"I want to be someone others can feel they can turn to when they need help. That's why I did it, sir."
Sturgis had to admit it was a good argument. A damn good one. But something in his mind wanted Bud to know how he felt, too.
"I needed your help, Lieutenant," he finally said.
Sturgis watched as that comment hit Bud like two torpedoes tracking a tanker. The junior JAGC officer began talking rapidly. "Yes sir, I know, but given what had happened between us-"
Sturgis held up his hand to slow him. "Lieutenant,"
But Bud, sensing his case was floundering continued plowing. "I want you to know sir, I was wrong in how I handled your case, and I am sorry. Do-do you think you could forgive me for what I did, sir?"
His father had always taught him to forgive and forget. Maybe it was time to do just that.
"Time heals all," Sturgis said as he got up from his desk. He'd have to give some additional thought about to what to do next. "Please excuse me."
Bud looked at him for a moment and then reluctantly nodded. For now, this conversation was finished.
xxxvixx
Bud was not going to be intimidated. Sure, Special Agent Gibbs and his new junior agent, Kate Todd, had lead him to one of their infamous interrogation rooms, but after his run-in with Sturgis Turner, he wasn't about to let L. Jethro Gibbs buffalo him again. No sir.
After Bud had taken his seat, Gibbs gave him a rundown of what had happened so far. Under normal circumstances, Bud would have been willing to help, within, of course the letter of the law. Besides they had worked so well together in Iraq…but now Bud felt as if he had something to prove.
For his part, Gibbs noted the set of the junior lawyer's jaw and the change in usually friendly demeanor. It was time to switch tactics.
Gibbs stood, leaning over the desk at the junior JAGC officer. "We know that nine parachutes were rigged to fail – doctored them and then repacked them. Sergeant Fuentes died as a result of that, and that's premeditated murder."
Bud looked behind him as the NCIS agent walked around in back of him. "I'm sold. Hey, if I'm on the jury, you've got my vote." It was clear he was not comfortable with the head of the DC MCRT doing this but he wasn't going to buckle under.
"We found DNA on the bag chute knots," Agent Todd added.
Bud gave her a long look, understanding what she was intimating. "Belonging to your suspect."
The former Gunnery Sergeant nodded. "We believe so…to be certain, we have to have access to the Armed Forces Registry."
Bud shook his head. "That's impossible." Bud looked over at Agent Todd who looked confused by the Lieutenant's refusal. "The registry was set up to identify remains only. He knows that."
Gibbs feigned ignorance. "I do?"
Bud could see Kate Todd looked as perplexed as her boss. It was the Conference Room at JAGC all over again when he had unintentionally made the Commander look like a good murder suspect. But he wasn't going to let Gibbs get away with tricking him this time. He looked over at Agent Todd again. "Tried to use it when he went after Commander Rabb." He turned and looked at MCRT leader. "For murder?"
Kate was impressed. "He get'em?"
Bud looked momentarily irritated. "No, cause, he wasn't guilty. He couldn't use the DNA Registry then…what makes him think he can use it now?"
Gibbs realized he was losing this battle, so he changed tactics. "You're a Lieutenant, you're a smart lawyer, and you know the law." The Head of the Washington, DC MCRT took Bud's pen and began clicking it. He didn't want to do this Bud Roberts, he actually liked the guy, but something in his gut told him the only way he could get the Lieutenant to cooperate was by flustering him.
Bud though remembered this tactic too. "I-I know why I'm here," he said, feigning bravado.
Gibbs smiled. "Well, I hope so. I requested you."
Bud, though, wasn't about to feel flattered about this 'honor'. "Yeah, you requested me because you think you can work me like you did last time when I ratted out Commander Rabb."
Gibbs pretended to be hurt by his accusation. "You did not rat on anyone, you told the truth." Actually, that was the truth. If Bud had said anything else he could have been the one that wound up behind bars.
Still, Bud wasn't going to fall for whatever Special Agent Gibbs had in mind. He noted the Special Agent brushing at the back of his jacket and blowing on it. "I, uh, gave my uniform an extra lint roll this morning, Agent Gibbs. And you waltzing around in my blind spot - not gonna intimidate me this time," the junior JAGC lawyer said sternly.
Gibbs was running out of options. "We're at 24 hours now. Soon it's going to be 48. You've done investigations, you know what that means."
Bud could relate to this. He didn't want to seem unduly antagonistic. "I've done JAGMAN investigations, sure. 48 hours, your evidence begins to degrade…disappear, witnesses change their stories…suspects improve theirs, I know."
Something told the gray haired Special Agent now was the time to strike. "So help us."
At last, Bud had turned the tables on Leroy Jethro Gibbs. "No! You're not going to get me to lawyer you past an iron clad prohibition that prevents tapping into DNA records that were designed to identify bodies, not chase suspects."
Gibbs tried one last time. "This guy is guilty, he killed him – let him drop to his death from 1300 feet."
Bud was resolute. "It doesn't matter," he said firmly.
Gibbs though actually had hoped he would say that. "For every legal firewall, there is a way around it."
Bud shook his head. "I can't help you. Hey, can I please have my pen back?" The Lieutenant knew he was antagonizing the NCIS Agent, but it felt good to be in the cat bird seat.
Gibbs handed the pen back. "Oh yeah, actually…you're gonna need it. Because if I can't have my DNA, I'm going to need some search authorizations signed."
1549 Local _ 1949 Zulu
Corpus Christi NLSO
Corpus Christi, Texas
Lieutenant Commander Laurel Brookes and the bailiff walked into the courtroom in the Corpus Christi NLSO. The bailiff entered first and stood at the front of the room. "All rise!" he barked.
All other members of the court, Jason Tiner for the defense, and Carl Strom for the prosecution, stood as Commander Brookes walked in and sat down at the bench. She regarded both teams, not bothering to look at her notes or her laptop. She steepled her hands in front of her face. "Before we go any further I have an announcement to make," she declared.
Jason and Rachel shared a quick look of bewilderment.
"In the case of Docket number 5126317, VR-23, the United States versus Legalman Second Class Rachel N. LaGrew, this court has been made aware of mitigating circumstances in this case by the Convening Authority. And that, along with the investigative report filed by Lieutenant Bud J. Roberts, JAG Corps Headquarters on the death and terrorist activities of Hassad Merhod, leads me to dismiss all charges against Legalman Second Class LaGrew."
Judge Brookes looked over at Carl Strom. "Counsel, were you about to speak?"
Carl couldn't let her know how pleased he was with this not going forward, so he made a show of indignation. "Your Honor, the Government requests a sidebar."
Brookes nodded. "So noted. Counsel. You may approach the bench."
Strom and Tiner glanced at each other as they approached the bench and stood before Brookes.
Lieutenant Strom lowered his voice so only the three of them could hear. "Your Honor, I'd like to know the mitigating circumstances for the termination of this Article 32 hearing before charges were even read."
Laurel Brookes agreed with his concern. She would have in his place. Commander Pelzer had assigned him this case and now all charges were being dropped. He deserved an explanation. "Very well, Lieutenant. Captain Roger Landham, Deputy Judge Advocate General, had serious questions for the Convening Authority as to why charges were brought against Legalman second Class LaGrew in the first place in light of the information in Lieutenant Roberts' report clearing her of any wrongdoing. Captain Landham has also noted a disturbing pattern of irregularities in this Office and is now having a discussion with Commander Pelzer about these irregularities. The Captain has also has asked me to convey his apologies to both counsels regarding the time and effort taken by this case. Please step away from the bench."
Both Lieutenants walked back to their respective desks and sat down. Jason could see that Rachel wanted to ask what was going on but held her silence.
Judge Brookes looked out at the Lieutenant Tiner and LaGrew. "Lieutenant, will you and Legalman Second Class LaGrew please rise?"
Both stood.
"Legalman Second Class Rachel N. LaGrew, the Convening Authority has dropped all charges against you. On behalf of the United States Navy, I want to apologize for the pain and mental anguish caused by these proceedings. You are directed to report to your superior for instructions regarding return to full duty."
"This Article 32 Investigation is hereby adjourned." And with the bang of her gavel, the proceedings were ended as quickly as they had begun.
xxxvixx
Jim Pelzer's eyebrows rose as he stood and greeted his guest. "Roger! This is an unexpected surprise. What brings you to Corpus?"
"I'm here on official business, Jim," DJAG Landham said curtly.
Commander Pelzer remained standing. "What's wrong, sir?" he asked in a more formal manner.
Roger looked the Corpus Christi NLSO Commander square in the eyes. "To begin with, I think you're being a tad overzealous charging Legalman Two LaGrew over something she had no control over."
Jim Pelzer stood his ground. "Captain, you know as well as I do that every soldier and sailor has a duty to investigate anyone they may begin seriously dating, especially those who are considered foreign nationals."
"True Jim, but Lieutenant Roberts showed that Hassan Merhod was sleeper agent in the Austin area and was backstopped with a deep background cover. Hell, even the administrators at the University of Texas at Austin didn't know this guy was working for al Jihad and you don't see them engaging in any witchhunts!"
"Do you think this is a witchhunt, sir?"
"Commander, if Legalman Two LaGrew followed the current protocols for standard background checks for personal relations, then you have no business bringing her up on charges!"
"Yes, sir."
"Recently there has been a pattern of cases coming to trial down here that in all likelihood didn't need to go before a judge. Are you cluttering up my court with trivial cases, just to fill your office's docket to make you look good?"
"Slim Jim" Pelzer didn't have an answer for that. After a moment of silence, the Commander cleared his throat. "What can I do to rectify the situation, sir?"
"You can start by writing a formal letter of apology to Legalman Two LaGrew and Lieutenant Commander Brookes. Then it might be a good idea for you and Commander Torres to get together and discuss the current slate of cases on the docket."
Much like the phrase "I desire" which means "do it", Roger Landham wanted Commander Pelzer to set up a meeting with the CO of the Trial Service Office as soon as possible.
"I'll set it up as soon as we're finished, sir." Jim Pelzer swallowed and asked his next question with some dread in his voice. "Should I consider resigning, sir?"
Roger sighed, silently grateful that he had gotten through to him. "No Jim, you are otherwise a good Commander. This is just a simple reminder that we are all human. Please keep that in mind in your dealings with all your staff."
xxxvixx
A more cooperative Captain Faul was sitting at his desk, talking with Special Agents Gibbs and Todd. Gibbs noted the change in demeanor. The Commander and Colonel's 'talk' with the Force Recon Captain had gotten through to him. Good, it made his job easier.
"Sergeant Fuentes was one of the finest NCO's in my command. He was tough on his riggers, but fair. I still find it difficult to believe his report and Corporal Ramsey…drove him to murder."
Gibbs gave the Force Recon Captain a reproving look. "Corporal Ramsey hasn't been proven guilty yet, Captain."
True, they had Dave Ramsey in custody, but something in Gibb's gut told him Ramsey wasn't their man. He may have had a beef with the Sergeant but not enough of one to commit murder.
Faul looked befuddled by Gibbs' statement. "You're holding him, scuttlebutt is he's confessed."
The gray haired head of the DC MCRT sat back and shook his head while giving the Captain a wry smile. "Never knew a Marine Captain who believed scuttlebutt."
Faul smirked at that comment. Yeah, he sure fell for that one.
"How did you prepare the day of the exercise?" Gibbs asked.
"I spent the morning chow with the Navy aviators piloting our KC-130."
"I noticed you used a Marine tanker bird," Gibbs interjected. "Why were you using a KC-130 tanker in the first place? Shouldn't you be using a Navy C-130J Super Herc for practice jumps?"
"Special mission, that's as far as I can go on that," Faul replied obliquely.
The Head NCIS agent nodded and continued with his questions. "You eat lunch with them?"
Faul nodded. "At the officer's mess. After lunch, we made a couple of dry runs, had a chalk talk, loaded up. Why?"
"Do you have your paraloft key, Captain?" Faul pulled out his set of keys and showed Gibbs the requested item. Gibbs merely noted what the key looked like and then allowed Faul to put it back in his pants pocket.
"Corporal Ramsey must've lifted Sergeant Fuentes' key long enough to make a duplicate." Gibbs said to Kate Todd who readily nodded her agreement.
"Corporal Ramsey made a key to the paraloft?" Faul said sitting up. Now they really had his attention. He knew there was bad blood between Ramsey and Fuentes, but he never thought Corporal Dave Ramsey would go and do something stupid like that.
Gibbs put his notepad in his jacket pocket and started to get up. "The only way he could've slipped in to sabotage the chutes. Thank you, Captain." Gibbs got up and shook the Force Recon Captain's hand.
"Thank you," Kate said as she stood and shook his hand as well.
Faul felt a little off kilter that this second meeting with the Navy cops had gone so smoothly.
"Thank you," he said to her as they both headed out the door. Then his mind seized on the question about the key. "Why didn't you just ask to see my key?" he asked them.
Gibbs stopped and exchanged a look of surprise with Kate. He turned to Faul with a sheepish look on his face. "Agent Todd is new, just teaching her how to interrogate."
But Faul didn't buy it. "The paraloft was secured between 0900 and 1800. That's why you wanted to know what I was doing all day, you suspected me."
Kate covered well. "If the Captain were a suspect, we would have read him his rights, wouldn't we?" she said with a perfectly straight face.
Gibbs gave her a grin. "Very good, Agent Todd."
Quantico MCB
Gibbs knew that the Captain would stonewall him on the plane question, that's why the Light Colonel walked into the hanger's parachute loft as he and Kate Todd headed back to DC.
Mac walked over to the unit's Staff Sergeant who had been filling out reports at his desk. He now stood at attention and saluted.
"Ma'am,"
Mac returned the salute. "Lieutenant Colonel MacKenzie, JAG Corps. I'm working with NCIS on the investigation into Sergeant Larry Fuentes' death. I need to ask you some questions."
Staff Sergeant Ramon Melon nodded. "Aye ma'am."
She started with a routine question. "Were you on the stick that jumped on 30th September, Staff Sergeant?"
Staff Sergeant Melon shook his head. "No ma'am, I was with the second stick on board. We didn't get to jump."
The Staff Judge Advocate Lieutenant Colonel nodded, satisfied with his answer and then asked her next question, the more important one to this case. "The plane you were using for this night jump was a KC-130, a tanker version of the Hercules transport. Why is that, Staff Sergeant? Isn't a little unusual for stateside units to be jumping out of aircraft whose main duty is refueling other aircraft?"
Harm would be so proud of her handling of this question if he could see her right now.
Ramon Melon was not really surprised that she asked the question. He was kind of wondering why no one else hadn't asked it before now. "We were being trained for a special mission with an MEU in Iraq. They use their tankers in a pinch as paratroop transports so as not to arouse suspicion among the insurgents, ma'am."
"Isn't that dangerous, Staff Sergeant?" True, it was an obvious question, but she wanted to hear what he thought.
"Dangerous, but a necessary evil, ma'am," he replied. "But we have been training for over a month now. The entire platoon knew the drill, especially Sergeant Fuentes, and he pounded it into the rest of them just how dangerous this was."
And maybe someone got tired of hearing that… Mac nodded to the Melon. "Thank you, Staff Sergeant. That will be all."
xxxvixx
Mac sat down heavily in her chair. It had been a grueling day and the drive back from Quantico hadn't helped. As she stared at her computer monitor, she wasn't sure whether it was worth it or not to deal with the evenings' emails or to start fresh tomorrow morning. Harm had been rather circumspect after their meeting with Gibbs and since he wasn't working on anything other than the administrivia cases Chegwidden had given him right now, she strongly suspected he was doing his own digging on the Singer investigation. That didn't help her mood very much.
And then there was their own tangled Pas de Deux which now had a new wrinkle. Mac sighed theatrically and wondered if other male-female relationships were this complicated.
The Light Colonel had just about convinced herself to call it a night. She didn't have any other court cases coming up until next Monday, so she had a little wiggle room and a good steamy bubble bath sounded wonderful right now.
Then her phone jarred her back to reality. She picked up the receiver and punched her line. "Colonel MacKenzie speaking."
It was a female voice. 'Uh…Mac?' The Light Colonel instantly knew who it was.
"Grams! Uh, Ms. Rabb-"
Sarah Rabb chuckled. 'Grams is just fine,' she said sounding bemused.
The SJA Light Colonel though wasn't in the best frame of mind, so she immediately jumped to the wrong conclusion. "Is something wrong?"
Mac could hear the old woman's gentle smile in her voice. 'Not with me, but I strongly suspect there is between you and Harmon.'
Mac was floored. "How did you know?" she was barely able to get out.
Sarah Rabb chuckled again. Mac realized though, that she was on her side. 'You aren't the only one that has a sixth sense when it comes to people we care about. Now what's going on between you two?'
Rather than playing lawyer with her and trying to bluff her way through this conversation, the Light Colonel decided she had to tell someone. "Are all relationships this complicated?"
Sarah laughed quietly but it was truly in sympathy and not to mock her. 'Oh Hon, you have no idea. When it comes men, well, sometimes the best you can do is try and see it from their point of view.'
That didn't help her much as far as the Light Colonel was concerned. "And what about him? Isn't he supposed to try and understand what I'm going through?"
Gram knew what she meant. 'Yes, but if it was as easy as most people think it is, there would be lot more of those happier couples out there. What is Harmon doing?'
Mac sighed. Maybe telling her what was going on would help. "We're involved in a complex case involving a former colleague, a fellow lawyer here in the office. She died this spring. Harm may have mentioned her."
Grams knew immediately who she was talking about. 'Lieutenant Loren Singer, yes, Harmon told me about what happened with her and with him.'
Those simple words brought a horde of dark images to her mind that she would rather leave in the past, so Mac just brushed aside that last part and focused on Lieutenant Singer. "Well, now it seems she was involved in some kind of operation - it has national security implications and your grandson is determined to find out what she was doing."
'At the risk of his career?' Grams asked.
She did understand. "Yes."
'Sarah, listen to me. Let him find out what he can, but in no way let him jeopardize his career. You must do everything you can to help him no matter how wild the avenues of approach look.'
Grams sense of urgency worried the Light Colonel. "I'm not sure I follow, Grams."
'Men have a certain way of trying to do things. Just be there to pull him back if he starts to go into a nosedive. Only you have the ability to make him pull out.'
While those words flattered her, they also increased her concern. "I'm not sure that I do."
'Yes, you do Mac. I know you do. Let him do what he needs to do, but be there to pull him back if it looks like he might be headed for trouble.'
Headed for trouble? Then I'd better tell her what else he's doing. "He's also trying to adopt a young girl," she blurted out.
The line was quiet for a moment. 'My Harmon?'
Thank God she had called. Someone was finally listening to her concerns. "Yes."
But Grams didn't seemed to be shaken by this revelation at all. 'Well, I can't say I'm surprised. He's always felt this need to look out for others.'
Now it was Mac's turn to chuckle. "Like he's tried to do with me."
Sarah joined in her namesake's mirth. 'You don't have to fall over limp into his arms but acknowledging you need his help every now and then would do him a world of good.' Then she continued more soberly. 'As for this child, is she causing you two to have any problems?'
Mac smiled at that. No, Mattie Johnson was actually helping them. "No, not really. She's almost a teenager."
Sarah Rabb sighed. 'Just like Gym…the little Laotian girl, you know the one that went with him on the search for his father?'
Her words struck Mac like a thunderbolt. How could she not have made the connection? "Oh my God! I never- I didn't think-"
But Grams soothing voice let her know it wasn't as bad as Mac thought it was. 'That's why I called, hon. With all that's going on, I'm not surprised he hadn't said anything specifically to you about Gym. What did he tell you about her?'
"He's been opening up to me lately about this Laotian girl that he witnessed being killed while searching for his father. He never said her name. Just that Mattie reminds her in some ways, of that girl." Mac admitted.
'That's who he's thinking about, Sarah. That and the fact that Mattie's father is not there for her right now. You know how Harmon feels about fatherless children and children in trouble,' Grams patiently explained.
Mac sighed this conversation had helped more than she ever thought it would. "I'm beginning to get a better picture now."
'Then trust me when I say, this search for answers is going to give you some wild twists and turns. Be ready to help him, but at the same time, tell him that you have to work together or it all collapses. Believe me, he'll understand. It's what he's been looking for.'
xxxvixx
Though it was late and most everyone had secured for the evening, Harmon Rabb, Jr. had his blinds closed as he sat at his desk and dialed the number that written in his address book under letter 'A' with the initials A.A. by the telephone number.
'Good evening this is Lisa with Air America aviation. How may I direct your call?'
Harm closed his eyes and said a silent prayer of thanks. Good, it's still working…for now.
Harm smiled as he began the conversation. "Lisa, this is Harmon Rabb. Is Alan Blaisdell available?"
'Oh Harm, it's good to hear from you!' she gushed. 'I thought you had been fired. Well, it won't hurt for you to just talk him.' The aviator/lawyer could tell she was holding the phone down as she talked to her boss. 'Mr. Blaisdell, phone call for you.'
The Head of the CIA Air Corps quickly picked up the receiver. 'This Air America Aviation, Alan Blaisdell speaking, how may I help you?'
Harm plunged ahead damn the torpedoes…"Alan this is Harmon Rabb." For now Harm decided not to use his rank. It gave them, he hoped, a friendlier footing.
Alan didn't sound happy. If anything, he was furious. 'Rabb! How the hell did you get this number?!'
"You gave it to me," Harm stated adroitly.
The aviator/lawyer listened as Alan held the phone down. 'Lisa?! Lisa!' Not finding his quarry he put the receiver back next to his mouth. 'Damn you Rabb, are you trying to get me fired as well?'
Harm knew he was worked up about this sleight of hand. If he could just get him to listen. "Just hear me out, Alan,"
'Oh for the love of-' Alan swore and then seemed to get himself back under control. 'All right, you've got one minute, Rabb,' he declared.
Harm made his presentation. "Al Jihad has recruited IRA sympathizer to help them steal or hijack an American bomber." He gambled that the next part would not sink his case because at this point he really didn't know what Loren Singer had been up to. "We think Loren Singer was trying to stop him. Do you know anything about what she was doing?"
There was silence on the other end of the phone for a moment and then Andy Watson picked up the line.
'Hey Harm.'
Harm smiled as he leaned back in his chair. "Andy, it good to hear from you."
Unlike Alan, the 'Air American' pilot seemed eager to talk. "Great to hear from you, man. I thought you had parted ways with Air America."
Uht oh. Don't they tell anyone there what happens to people who are let go? Harm sat up and did a quick verbal tap dance. "Let's just say there I'm filling a special liaison duty between JAG Corps and the CIA."
Andy's voice immediately became guarded. "Does Catherine Gale know about this, buddy?"
"I'm sure she will soon, Andy."
"Okaay then. Well, what do you need?" Good, at least he didn't hang up the phone.
Harm knew this reprieve might not last. "Loren Singer, did you know her?"
Andy sighed. 'I talked to a Ms. Singer, didn't know her first name was Loren,' he admitted.
"Did she identify herself as working for JAG Corps?" Harm pressed.
'No, but she had clearance. Top Level clearance.'
That had to be the work of DSD. "What did she ask for, Andy?"
'She wanted me to present myself to a Sean Macklin as a pilot. And Alan agreed. Set it up with Loren himself,' Andy replied.
That sly rat…why couldn't he tell me that himself? "Andy, when was the meet supposed to take place?"
Andy was silent for a moment. 'Back in February. Never happened.'
Okay, so maybe Loren was trying to single-handedly take on al Jihad. Considering what the ambitious Lieutenant had done in the past it didn't surprise him as much as he thought it would. "Did you ever wonder what happened?"
Andy sounded like he was trying to hold back a sarcastic chuckle. 'We're not paid enough to wonder, Harm. We just do our jobs as they tell us to do them. Sometimes plans fall apart. We see it happen all the time.'
Okay, so the meeting was supposed to take place in February. What were the chances she had brought him by earlier? Maybe to whet Macklin's appetite. "Did you ever see Macklin before the meeting was supposed to take place?" Harm figured if Andy had seen him, maybe they could get a sketch of him….
'No, but I did have a photo of him. She gave it to me. If I didn't toss it…wait a minute…yeah, I still got it.'
The JAGC Commander couldn't believe his good luck. "Can you send it to me?" Harm said urgently.
Andy though didn't seem flustered by his intense response. 'If Alan okays it, sure.'
Harm couldn't believe things were falling into place this easily. "Okay, Andy, put him back on the line."
Harm heard the open line being passed back to the nominal head of 'Air America' aviation.
"Alan?"
Alan's mood hadn't improved. 'I'm here, Rabb.'
Harm got right to the point. "You set up a meeting between Singer and Andy?"
The aviator/lawyer could tell he was on the defensive. 'She was vetted by a Mr. Green. Who was she anyway?'
He didn't know? "She worked for JAG Corps, Alan. She was an attorney."
It was like throwing gasoline on a raging fire. 'An attorney?! What the hell kind of cockamamie stunt was she trying to pull, Rabb?! Did you put her up to this?!'
Harm didn't want to lose this opportunity to find out more about the elusive Mr. Macklin. "No I didn't Alan. We think she was trying to stop an al Jihad plot to steal or hijack an American or NATO bomber. Andy has a photo of the man he was supposed to meet. Can I come over and get that photo, or better yet, can you send it to me?" He knew he was pushing it. He prayed Alan didn't hang up on him.
'And if I say you can't and we won't, Rabb, are you going to sic Catherine Gale on me?'
Harm smiled when he said that. "No, Alan, nothing so crass. I'll just have the JAG, Admiral Chegwidden, speak with your Director of Operations. This photograph is now considered part of an active JAG Corps investigation. I'm sure Ms. Gale will understand the legal ramifications of impeding an active JAG Corps investigation especially one that has national security implications. And involves JAG, NCIS and your own organization."
Alan sighed heavily. 'All right, Rabb. Andy will send it tomorrow morning by courier. Consider it a parting gift from Air America.'
xxxvixx
The gray haired Special Agent was enjoying 'the most important meal of the day' when he heard a familiar voice behind him.
"So this is where you get your coffee from…."
Gibbs didn't turn at the sound of the voice. He just continued eating. "How did you find me, Tobias?" he said after he took a drink of coffee to wash down his food.
"I'm an FBI agent and a trained investigator," he replied sitting down next to him. Gibbs' favorite waitress came over to see to the new customer.
"Just coffee," Tobias said to her.
"What do you want, Tobias?" Gibbs asked curtly when she left.
The FBI Agent turned to him. "What? No, 'Hey Tobias, how are you this morning?' Are you always this brusque in the mornings?"
Gibbs ate the last of the egg on his plate and gave the Special Agent in Charge a stoic look. "What do you want, Tobias?"
Special Agent Fornell sighed. "All right, I'm coming to you with my hat in my hand, asking you for a truce, all right?"
Gibbs glanced over at him. "You're not wearing a hat and I wasn't aware that we needed a truce."
Tobias Fornell suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Look, you were right about Diane, okay? I'm sorry for what happened."
"I warned you," Gibbs said in reply as he took another sip from his coffee cup.
"Yeah, you did, several times, as I recall," the FBI Special Agent groused as he picked up a menu and pretended to read it.
Gibbs gave him a wry smile. "So why are you here?"
Tobias sighed again as he put the menu down. He acted like he was delivering bad news. "I need you to cooperate with Special Agent Blackadder."
Gibbs turned in his chair to stare at him. "You took her back."
"Hey, she's a good agent-" he said defensively.
Gibbs turned back to his plate. There was still a piece of bacon and some toast left. "She almost got me killed in Rota, Tobias."
Yeah, well, she's sorry about that," Fornell said brusquely.
"She never told me that," the Head of the DC MCRT shot back.
"That's because she was afraid to say anything to you," he snapped.
Gibbs thought about that. Then nodded. "Yeah, it's probably better that she didn't."
"Well I need you to cooperate with her now," Tobias declared.
Gibbs stopped eating and looked over at him again. "Why?"
"Because she's the Agent in Charge for the I-52 Task Force," he said as if that was the best reason in the world for doing so.
Gibbs shook his head. He didn't care she was the new Director of the FBI, much less the Head of the FBI's premier Anti-Terrorism Task Force. "I know she is. Why did you do that, Tobias?"
"For the same reason you hired her away from me in the first place," he replied defensively. "She's tough and determined, and she won't give up until she gets her man."
"Her obsession with avenging her brother almost got me killed," Gibbs added.
"Look, just bury the hatchet with her, okay? I'm not asking you to become best buddies, but we're all after the same bad guys and she's put together an impressive team to take down al Jihad. And with your help, she'll do that."
"It's out of my hands, Tobias," Gibbs said as he took another sip of coffee.
For the first time this morning, FBI Special Agent in Charge Tobias Fornell looked angry. "What do you mean? Is that your way of saying you won't talk to her?!"
Gibbs shook his head. "No, we've been taken off the case. It's been reassigned to the Los Angeles branch."
The FBI SAC looked stunned. "Oh. Well, I guess that's that." He slowly got up to leave.
Gibbs shook his head. He didn't hate the guy and it wouldn't hurt have the FBI on friendly terms with him, for a change. "Do you still want me to talk to Agent Blackadder, Tobias?"
Tobias looked distractedly at the Head of the MCRT. "Huh? Oh yeah, sure, sure, that be great…" Gibbs watched as SAC Fornell left.
"You're welcome, Tobias," Gibbs said to the swinging exit door as he got up to pay his bill.
xxxvixx
G. Callen looked closely at the documents he held in his hands. The older man was watching closely and smiled and he saw his younger friend slowly page through these treasures.
"Where did you get these?" Callen asked the man in his native tongue.
Best you not know," he admonished. He nodded at the papers with a gleam in his eyes. "So, my friend. Is this what you were looking for?"
The NCIS Special Operations agent paged through the first of the thin documents. Despite its lack of quantity in of number of pages, what was contained in what would be considered an 'executive brief' by other intelligence agencies enclosed an explosive amount of information on al Jihad's most ambitious operation to date.
The name scribbled in Leveritinov's Ukrainian Cyrillic near the top of the page was Ptica. Callen could easily translate that. Firebird. But he could also read the Pashtu – it too translated as Firebird.
In his hands he held the outline for Operation Firebird.
"Yes, my old friend," Callen said smiling at his contact. "This is exactly what we were looking for."
1037 Local _ 1447 Zulu
JAG Corps Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
Harm looked up to see Bud Roberts stumping his way through the JAGC bullpen. He could tell by the look on his face that the Lieutenant angry and embarrassed.
"Bud, slow down, where's the fire?" he called out as he got up from his desk.
Bud stopped and looked momentarily irritated. Then his face fell. "Sorry sir- I-"
Harm hadn't been a good mentor to him since before Paraguay. Maybe he could make up for that now. "Come on in, Bud. Let's talk."
The former Public Affairs officer looked torn. Then he sighed and walked over to Harm's door. "All right, sir."
The aviator/lawyer waited as Bud made his way into the room and got himself seated. Then Harm closed the door and walked over and sat down next to him.
"Heard you did an excellent job down in Corpus," Harm began.
Bud didn't take it as a compliment. "I should have gone with Commander Turner," he said quietly.
Harm wanted to stop that kind of thinking right now. "Bud, you followed your intuition and that's a good thing. Anyway, the Admiral found a him a good substitute-"
"It was my chance to smooth things over with him sir, and I blew it," Bud persisted.
Harm, though, wanted the former Public Affairs officer to know it wasn't the end of the world. "There will be other opportunities Bud. Is there something else bothering you?"
"I'd rather not talk about it, sir," Bud said evasively.
"What's wrong, Bud?" Harm pressed.
Bud's face scrunched up in irritation. "I don't like being played, sir."
Ah…so that's what's got this bug up his six…. "No one does, Bud. Tell me what happened."
Bud sighed. "I went over to NCIS Headquarters at Special Agent Gibbs' request. When I got there, he tried to get me to let him use the DNA Registry so he could get evidence against a suspect in the Fuentes murder case."
"And did you let him use it?" Harm knew that Gibbs could be very good at getting what he wanted out of a suspect.
Bud's eyes widened as thought about what Harm was saying to him. "No sir! I told him I wouldn't, but when I wouldn't do as he asked, he had me sign off on some search warrants. Like I said, sir, I don't like being played. Why didn't he just ask me straight out?"
"Bud, look at it this way. Considering the fact that you weren't in your best mood when you went over there, would you have signed off on those warrants if he had asked you directly?"
Bud's shoulders slumped. "No, sir, probably not," he admitted.
"Exactly."
"Sir? What should I do, about Commander Turner, I mean…" Bud almost sounded like he was pleading, as if he didn't know what else to do.
Now it was Harm's turn to sigh. "Bud, Sturgis will let you know when he ready to talk. It's tough for him because now that Singer's gone, he's the new kid on the block again. He feels he has to prove himself…. Give him some time."
Harm could tell the young Lieutenant didn't like what he was being told. "Thank you sir. Well, I'd better get back to my office." He got up and Harm did the same.
"It will all work out, Bud." Harm said reassuringly, although he didn't feel very confident of that right now.
Bud's voice was heavy with doubt, which did not make Harm feel any more positive about the situation. "Yes sir." Harm closed the door and watch as Bud headed back to his office.
With a heavy sigh, Harm walked back over and sat down at his own desk. So much for mentoring.
xxxvixx
Bud was headed back to his office after a pre-trial arraignment later in the afternoon when he saw Commander Turner entering his. "Sir, do you have a moment?" he asked.
Sturgis turned and realizing Bud was not going to be deterred, reluctantly invited him into his office.
"What is it, Lieutenant?" he said after he had closed the door.
Bud didn't take a seat. "Sir, I just want you to know I am sorry about the appeal argument…and for what happened….for everything that happened…can't you just-"
The former Dolphin didn't want to hear the rest. He turned back to the door and began to open it. "Lieutenant, please stop following me and allow me the time to work it out."
"Yes sir. Sorry, sir," Bud had to try one last time to fix this. "Sir-"
Sturgis sighed heavily and turned back to the Lieutenant. "Treat me as you would a diver in the water. Do not turn the shaft, blow any tanks, operate or energize any underwater equipment. Do you understand my meaning, Lieutenant?"
"Yes, sir," a chastened Bud replied as he reached for the door knob.
As Bud started to head out, the Bubblehead stopped him. "Lieutenant, we will work this out. Just give me some time and space to do so, okay?" Sturgis hoped that the Lieutenant knew he was trying to come to terms with this.
Bud, though he wasn't happy about the situation, but he nodded in agreement to the Bubblehead's terms. "All right, sir."
Somewhere over Quantico
A lone C-130J rocked its way through the night sky. Captain Faul's Force Recon unit had been cleared to resume jump operations with one catch – Agents Gibbs and DiNozzo wanted to come along on an 'NCIS training mission'. Faul wasn't going to let them at first. He was still smarting over the fact his mission had been scrubbed, but at least now they would get jump out of a roomier Navy bird rather than that cramped Marine tanker. Plus there was an added bonus as far as he was concerned …hell, why not…hate to pass up the opportunity to toss a couple of NCIS agents out of a plane….
Tony grabbed his reserve chute and looking at it, groaned. "Oh no."
Gibbs gave his number two a sarcastic look. "What? Chickening out?"
"13…." Tony DiNozzo looked at Gibbs with disgust. "My first jump…my reserve is number 13."
Gibbs smiled. "Wouldn't have bothered Thumper, would it guys?" The two Force Recon troopers gave Gibbs weak smiles. "Either of you superstitious?"
"No sir," they said in unison.
Gibbs smiled again. "Great!" He turned to Tony. "Why don't you switch with Corporal Brinkman?"
"What's your reserve chute number?" Tony asked anxiously.
"Four," Brinkman replied.
Tony gave Gibbs a skeptical look and shook his head. "Four? Four's unlucky in China."
Gibbs gave Tony an exasperated look in return. "We're not in China!"
But Tony wouldn't budge on this issue. "I don't care!" He looked over at Paul Dafalmir. "What's your number?"
"Eight," Dafalmir replied.
A big smile broke out on Tony's face. "Great! "Eight's lucky in China," he explained unnecessarily to the three.
Gibbs frowned when he saw the look on Corporal Dafalmir's face. "There a problem?"
Paul though shook his head. "No, sir," he said curtly.
At that moment the red warning light went on as a buzzer went off. Captain Faul motioned to everyone. "STAND UP! HOOK UP!"
As everyone one readied themselves to jump, Gibbs got right up against Corporal Dafalmir. "Thumper ride you, Corporal Dafalmir?"
The Corporal gave him a sullen look. "He rode everybody, sir."
But Gibbs wasn't done. "About being a drug dealer? That's his reserve chute you're wearing. The one you switched on him when he landed."
The Corporal feigned ignorance. "Don't know what you're talking about, sir."
Now Special Agent DiNozzo weighed in. "You were the first one down, first one to get to Thumper. Ramsey was helping Brinkman out of a tree."
Brinkman turned and looked at his buddy. "What's he saying Paul?"
Paul shook his head. "I don't know."
Tony continued to press. "Only takes a couple of minutes to switch a bad chute for a good one."
Gibbs gave him the 'coup de grace'. "Marine Corps gave you a second chance-when Thumper found out you had soiled the uniform by dealing drugs, he wouldn't let you do it."
Up to now the Force Recon Captain had watched these two NCIS agents harassing the Corporal thinking it was some kind of stunt. But the mention of drugs blew that idea away. "I thought Corporal Ramsey did it," Faul said.
Paul looked over at his Captain with a pleading look, "he did, sir."
Gibbs wasn't about to be stopped at this point. "If I'm wrong Corporal, prove it." The senior NCIS agent reached out with his knife and cut Paul Dafalmir's main chute.
Faul nearly lost it. "What the hell are you doing?! His main can't open!"
"He's got a reserve!" Gibbs fired back.
Corporal Dafalmir could sense he might be able to get out of this after all. "Captain this is nuts! You going to put a stop to this, sir?!"
Faul wasn't sure what to do. Then the buzzer decided that for him. He looked at the waiting men. "THIRTY SECONDS TO DROP!"
Gibbs got right in the Corporal's face again. "A confession right now about your drug supplier will get you a deal!"
No one spoke for a moment. Then Paul Dafalmir gave Gibbs a sarcastic look.
"How good a deal?"
"Read him his article 31s!" Gibbs growled as he stepped away from this dirtbag and Tony moved closer and began to read murderer Paul Dafalmir his Article 31 rights.
"You have the right to remain silent and make no statement. If you make a statement, it can be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to—
But Brinkman didn't let Tony finish as he began throttling the Corporal. "He doesn't deserve a deal!"
Tony tried to intercede, but other Marines on board had joined in the melee resulting in pandemonium on board the C-130J. Tony was shoved closer and closer to the open door. "Hey, hey, hey, heeeyyaaaahhh!"
Gibbs reached out for Tony as he fell out of the rocking aircraft. Seeing that he was too late, he hoped his number two remembered his training. "Good bye, DiNozzo!" he called after him.
Gibbs watched as Tony's chute blossomed, and he thought he distinctly heard something from his senior agent as he floated downwards.
"Waaahoooo!"
1321 Local_1721 Zulu
Lindsey Residence
Silver Spring Maryland
Marjorie Lindsey had just finished vacuuming when she heard her doorbell ring. "Just a minute," she called out. She walked over and opened her door.
"Yes, who's – oh!"
She saw the man she least wanted to see standing at her door. Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs.
"Ms. Lindsey," he said in a well-mannered formal voice.
Special Agent Gibbs," she replied coldly.
"May I come in, please?" He asked. Again, the epitome of politeness.
Ms. Lindsey couldn't get over how respectful he was being. Still, this man had arrested her husband and had him sent to Leavenworth. "I-I don't have a lot of time right now-" she started to say.
"This will only take a moment of your time, ma'am," he said, again in his best courteous manner.
"All right," Marjorie relented. She lead him to the living room where they sat on the sofa. "What did you want to ask?"
Gibbs sighed as if trying to figure out how to formulate his question. "I know this is a difficult question, but your answer will help us immensely."
"All right." She wondered what the question was.
"Did Lieutenant Singer ever come here to the house?"
Marjorie looked confused for a moment. "Here? No, I can't recall that she…wait a minute…she did come over one evening, right before dinner. I remember now because Teddy was working late that same evening…."
Gibbs took out his note pad and pen. "What can you tell me about her visit?
Marjorie thought hard. "I remember she seemed…distracted. She asked if Teddy was here. I told her that he was working late at the Pentagon. I figured she was some colleague of his…anyway, she thanked me and was about to leave when she dropped this file folder she had been carrying in her portfolio. It was windy and rainy and I think a gust of wind caught her by surprise. Papers went everywhere- she was so embarrassed. I remember helping her pick them up."
"What kind of papers were they?" he said, trying not to startle her. Vivian was supposed to have followed up with Ms. Lindsey. That was another black mark against her in Gibbs' book.
Marjorie in the meantime was really getting into her recollection of that evening's events. "Well, there were quite a few stapled documents, and oh, yes, some photographs and what looked like diagrams…."
"Diagrams?" LJ Gibbs asked.
Marjorie nodded. "Yes, they looked funny to me. When I asked her about them, she said they were some documents he had asked for. As she started to put into the case in her portfolio, I saw the file label. It said 'Aircraft Mishaps.'" She gave the NCIS Agent a pleading look. "Agent Gibbs, do you think this could help my husband?"
Unless he deliberately held this back from us. Gibbs thought darkly while giving Ms. Lindsey a pleasant smile. "It could, Ms. Lindsey. Thank you for your time."
Marjorie walked the silver haired head of the DC MCRT to her door. "Thank you , Special Agent Gibbs."
2225 Local?_0225 Zulu?
Near Fort Storey, Virginia
Commander Brian 'Seadog' Ferrell, who was night fishing, watched as the two boats cut their engines. It was obvious something unusual was taking place. Two boats meeting out here late at night just off of Fort Storey? What were they up to? The Commander moved his little boat in closer.
Suddenly the night became lit with automatic rifle fire. Drug deal gone bad. Then he heard Arabic being spoken.
What the hell had he stumbled into? Now it sounded like a world war taking place as the two boat crews continued firing at each other. Commander Farrell turned his boat around to leave. He had to get back to shore and let someone know about this.
Suddenly bullets ripped through the back of Ferrell. With his last breath, he got his motor to start and slumped over the side of the boat. Bullets continued raking his boat as she pulled away at high speed, headed for the shoreline.
-TBC…