PART THREE

WEDNESDAY, JULY 11, 2007

JLS

0755

MAC'S POV

After getting the children into bed last night, I read over the case file once more before attempting to get some sleep.

I'm eager and ready to get to work on the case this morning, but I have to attend to command business first or I would've gone straight to the brig to meet with my client.

Coates stands as I approach her desk. "Good morning, Petty Officer," I say as I reach her desk and stop to wait for her to respond before I give her an assignment.

After giving her instructions to locate Lt. Graves and have her report to my office, I walk into my office feeling that there are just too many holes in the prosecution's case for me to believe that PO Bosworth is responsible for the explosion that injured nine.

MAC'S OFFICE

0810

I hear a knock on my door and I assume that it's Coates or Graves. "Enter."

The door opens, and it isn't either one of them. It's Vukovic.

"Coates, isn't at her desk, Colonel, but I wanted to apologize to you for yesterday. When we spoke, I didn't know that Captain Rabb was away."

I know that I shouldn't respond to his statement because it will only give him the opportunity to get under my skin, but I ask anyway.

"What does my husband being gone on an assignment have to do with the case?"

"Nothing with the case, but it could be skewing your judgment. He's out on a carrier, investigating a mishap and probably flying while you're here sitting behind a desk ... not very exciting. Taking this case gives you a chance to experience a little excitement. It isn't that I don't understand that, but I think that you should reconsider taking the case."

I knew that, whatever his response was, it would get me worked up, but I need to stay professional and keep my cool. I stand.

"I can assure you that being pregnant while having four other children at home gives me enough excitement. I took the case because I'm the best qualified. I assume that you're finished with your pretrial mind games with opposing counsel now, so you're dismissed, Lieutenant."

"Aye, aye, ma'am," he says before turning on his heel and leaving.

He opens my office door and almost collides with Lt. Graves, who steps aside to let him exit before she enters my office.

"Colonel MacKenzie, Coates said that you wanted to see me, ma'am."

"Yes, Lieutenant, I need someone to do some legwork for me on a case."

"The case that Lt. Vukovic is here to prosecute, ma'am?"

"I see that there's nothing wrong with the grapevine around here. Yes, that case."

She had that dreamy-eyed look on her face when she mentioned his name, so I have to ask.

"I need to ask you something first. Is there anything between you and Lt. Vukovic? I wouldn't want you to feel that you were splitting your loyalties."

"Ma'am, there's nothing between Lt. Vukovic and me. What do you need for me to do, Colonel?"

BRIG

0940

I'm seated and ready to go to work when they finally bring PO Bosworth into the interview room to meet with me.

"Ma'am."

"Have a seat, Petty Officer. We have a lot of things to go over."

I know that I sound in a rush, but after this morning in the office, I now have a better understanding of how much work it's going to be to balance being a CO while I work this case and try to do it without giving up any family time.

"Yes, ma'am. Where do we start?" he says as he takes a seat on the opposite side of the table."

"First, I'll tell you that the prosecution has offered you a deal, but before I can advise you as to whether or not it's in your best interest to take the deal, I want to go over their case with you."

"Yes, ma'am, whatever you think is best. I have just one request. Tell it to me simple, ma'am. No legal talk. I'm not able to think in here."

"Then here it is. They say that you brought the cooler to the picnic with the intent to kill or, at minimum, cause bodily injury to a Petty Officer First Class Donald King because you're both up for chief, and you believe that it's more likely that he'll be selected than you. They say that's why you placed the cooler containing the explosive material by the grill, because PO King was cooking that day. They say that you intentionally left the cooler behind so that you wouldn't be present when it exploded, thus endangering you or your family. PO Lancaster tried to get you to take the cooler, but you were able to play it off and still leave the cooler behind. They say that it was PO Lancaster who botched your plan. You didn't anticipate him putting the cooler in his car right after you left and it exploding in his trunk." He's shaking his head as I finish. "What is it, Petty Officer?"

"Ma'am, the way you told their theory, I sound guilty even to me. I know that it doesn't look good, but I didn't do it."

"Do you have a problem with PO King?" I ask.

"Not a problem, ma'am. We both know what we're doing when it comes to aircraft and, with the selection board for chief coming up, we do try to show up each other at work sometimes because it is a tight race. He's three months senior to me, and we're pretty even on Fit Reps. It's a friendly competition to earn an extra brownie point or two that might sway the board. I don't dislike the guy, but now that this has happened ... I guess I can see how we made each other strive to be better at work, but how it also brought out some of our aggressive tendencies as well. Have you ever known someone who brought out the best and the worst in you at the same time?"

I put my hand on my belly in response to his question. No one made me a better lawyer by challenging me in the courtroom or could get me to show my aggressive side like Harm. I don't think that he'd want to hear, 'Yeah, and he's the father of this baby.' So, I offer a nod of understanding to his question before continuing to go through the aspects of the case.

"They still have a team combing Admiral Baker's Field for fragments large enough for them to piece more of the story together, but, in the meantime, that means that their case doesn't have any physical evidence to support it. The case is based on the circumstantial evidence that a cooler - that someone identified as yours - exploded moments after it was put into the trunk of a car. Your motive and even the identification of the cooler as yours is based on witness statements. That isn't an easy case for the prosecution to prove. Now, I haven't interviewed any of the witnesses yet, but I'll be doing that in the next couple of days. The prosecution didn't put a time limit on the deal that he offered, but it could be withdrawn at any time without warning, so I want to tell you what the offer is before I leave today."

"Ma'am, it doesn't matter what the deal is. I brought juice and water for my wife and girls. To me, taking a deal would make it look like I was saying that I did it ... that I was responsible for those people being hurt. I didn't do it. I don't want to take a deal, ma'am. Can you understand that?"

"Yes, Petty Officer, I understand your position. Now, we've got work to do. We're going to go over everything in the file a page at a time. We've talked about your relationship with PO King, but is there anyone else with whom he might have had a problem?"

"Not that I know of, ma'am. Do you think that he was the intended target?"

"I don't know, but there is some logic in assuming that no one knew that you were going to leave without your cooler or that PO Lancaster was going to agree to transport it to work the next day for you. Since the cooler was setting near PO King, he seems to be a logical target. Another scenario is that someone heard PO Lancaster agree to take the cooler for you and placed the explosive material in there when they knew that he was going to be taking it, making him the target. Yet another scenario is that you were the intended victim ... that the explosive was put in the cooler under the assumption that you'd have possession of it when it exploded. Do you have any enemies? Has anyone threatened you or a family member, even if you thought nothing of it at the time?"

"No, ma'am."

"Have you had a shipmate, a neighbor or anyone else borrow the cooler recently?"

"No, ma'am."

"When you put your cooler by the grill, do you remember if there were any other coolers there?"

"Yes, ma'am. There were four, I think. The food was already there."

"Any of them blue and white like yours?"

"I don't recall, ma'am. I'm sorry."

"I understand that PO Lancaster is still in the hospital, so I'll see about speaking with him this afternoon. The interviews will take time, so you may not see me for a couple of days, but don't panic. I just won't have anything new to ask or inform you about. If you think of something, they'll let you call your lawyer."

I get up, and it feels good to change position. I give him my card with my number on it and put away my notes.

"Do you have any questions for me before I go?"

"How long do you think it'll be until I get out of here, ma'am?"

"Based on the severity of the charges, they won't let you out of here until the case is resolved. How long will that be? There's no way to tell how long it'll take to get through it. It's a process that takes time. I know that it doesn't sound very encouraging, but I won't waste any time. I'll have you out of here as soon as I can. I'm sorry that I can't offer you a better answer, Petty Officer."

"It's okay, ma'am. I understand ... and the way you said it, I think that you believe me, and that makes me feel better."

"I do believe you, and it's my job to prove it. Try not to worry. I'll see you again when I have some answers ... and remember, if you think of anything, give me a call."

"Yes, ma'am. Thank you."

MAC'S OFFICE

1430

I've taken out my notes and plopped down in my chair.

It feels good to be off my feet. I don't recall running an investigation as being this tiring before.

I look over my notes from my visit with PO Lancaster. I had great timing because his release from the hospital was being processed when I arrived. Not only was it fortunate that I caught him, but it also gave me a chance to talk with his girlfriend, Cindy Collins, now his fiancée, who was one of the two civilians who were injured.

PO Lancaster supported PO Bosworth. He didn't believe that Al was the kind of guy who'd hurt anyone. He didn't think that PO King was the type to want to hurt anyone either. In fact, he couldn't think of anyone who'd want to hurt anyone there. The part of his statement that really stands out to me is: "Colonel, things might get a little heated around the shop now and then between us, but it blows over. It's kind of like having brothers and sisters. I have two of each. We don't always get along, and my brothers and I have even had a wrestling match or two over the years, but we wouldn't hurt each other. By the same token, if someone else hurt one of us, they'd have to answer to the rest of us. That's the way it is around the shop. We don't always agree, but we wouldn't try to blow each other up. Both PO King and PO Bosworth have children. I think that either of them would be capable of hurting someone to protect their country, their wife or their kids, but to risk hurting children to hurt each other, I don't see it happening. It takes a person who's a little 'off,' if you know what I mean, to hurt children."

Miss Collins said that it all happened so fast that she wasn't really sure what had happened. She remembered that Ron had been acting a little strange all day, so she'd followed him to the car. She'd asked him why he was acting funny, and he'd told her that he wasn't acting any differently than usual. He just wanted to make sure that he didn't forget the cooler when they left in a little while. She'd said okay and started back towards the picnic area. She said that it was about thirty seconds later when she heard the blast, and a second later, it felt like her arm was on fire. She said that she felt the burn and she knew that the blast had come from behind her, so she turned to look and saw that Ron was down on the ground and that the back of the car was on fire. She said that the only thing that she remembered thinking after that was that Ron was dead. It wasn't until medical help arrived that she found out that a piece of debris had punctured her skin and was stuck in the back of her arm. Before concluding our conversation, she let me know that she now knew why Ron had been acting strangely that day. He'd been worried about his plans to propose that evening. When she'd seen him after his surgery, the first thing that he'd done was to tell her what his plan had been for that night, and then he'd proposed. She showed me the ring. She's very happy.

I yawn. I could really use a nap, but I don't have time. I need to keep working on this.

1445

I hear a knock on my door. I'm not in the mood for another Vukovic visit, so I hope that it's Coates. "Enter."

I'm not sure who it is at first, because my eyes fall on the beautiful mixed bouquet of flowers that they're carrying.

"Are you all right, Colonel?" Coates asks with concern.

"Yes, Coates, I'm fine."

"These flowers just came for you, ma'am," she says as she sets the vase on the corner of my desk.

"Thank you."

"Can I get you anything? You look a little flushed, ma'am."

"I'm fine." I see the concern in her eyes. " Really, I'm just a little tired."

"Very well then, I'll leave you to read your card, ma'am." She turns to leave, but stops after only a step and turns back to face me. "You will let me know if there's anything that I can do for you, won't you, Colonel?"

"You're concern is appreciated, but I'm fine ... and yes, if there's anything that you can do, I'll let you know, Jennifer."

She smiles brightly. "Thank you, ma'am," she says before turning around and leaving my office.

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. There really is something to this 'cleansing breath' thing I think before I reach for the card.

I'm sure that the flowers are from Harm, but I open the card with some degree of apprehension concerning the reason why he sent them.

The card reads: No call tonight, I'm traveling. I should be home by Friday. Love, Harm

I smile, but it's short lived when it dawns on me that he said by Friday, which means that he won't make it to our childbirth class tomorrow night. That isn't something that I was in the mood to hear at the moment.

On the other hand, he'll be home soon ... and the even better news is, I'll be able to answer Sami's question tonight.

However, I'm not sure that the news that her daddy won't be home on her birthday will be the news that she wants to hear. Of course, the fact that he'll be home for her birthday celebration on Saturday may make the news okay.

RABB HOME

1640

I don't make it more than a few steps into the living room before Sami greets me. "Hi, Mommy. When Daddy coming home?"

"Go get your sisters and brother and come into the kitchen, and I'll tell you while we make dinner."

KITCHEN

MINUTES LATER

I've had time to say goodbye to Sofia, the nanny, before the children come into the kitchen, ready to make dinner while they hear when Harm is coming home, but I just don't have the energy to cook tonight. So I first ask if there are any objections to us ordering pizza and having it delivered.

After a unanimous child vote for pepperoni pizza, I place a call to order it. I know that, if I tell them when Harm is coming home before I get on the phone, I won't be able to hear with all the cheering that's going on.

I hang up the phone.

"Okay, now for the last order of business. Daddy won't be calling tonight. He's traveling. He couldn't tell me exactly when, but he said that he'll be home by Friday."

Most of them look happy to hear the news, but not Sami. "He gonna miss my birthday," Sami says with a pout.

"It looks like he won't be here for your real birthday tomorrow, but he'll be here for your party on Saturday," I say, hoping that it'll cheer her up.

"My party is a long time away," Sami says, her lower lip quivering slightly.

As tired as I feel tonight, I have to agree with her. It does seem like a long time away.

"It isn't that far away ... tomorrow's your birthday, the next day Daddy will be home, and then the next day is your party," I say as I bend over to give her a comforting hug, which does seem to help some because I get a tiny smile from her.

AFTER DINNER

I know that I must look as tired as I feel when Mattie volunteers to supervise the after-dinner clean up, the evening family activity and bath time so that I can lie down and rest for a little bit.

Since Mattie's been buried in her school work lately, she hasn't been spending much time with her siblings. With the younger children all smiles at the prospect of having time with their big sister, I can see that it's something that they all really want, and I'm so tired that I agree. So I leave Mattie in charge and head to my room.

MASTER BEDROOM

A FEW HOURS LATER

I feel a tap on my shoulder before I hear a soft female voice. "Mac, Sami doesn't want me to tuck her in."

My eyes open to see that it's Mattie talking to me, but my mind is still in a sleepy haze.

"I figured that, since she misses Harm so much, I should get you to tuck her in. I'm sorry that I had to wake you," Mattie says apologetically.

I sit up straight, and the quickness of the movement from prone to sitting causes me to become a little lightheaded, keeping me from jumping to my feet.

"No, don't be sorry. I was planning just to rest. I don't know why I fell asleep. You've done so much tonight already. I'll put the kids to bed."

"Are you all right, Mac?"

My dizziness has passed, so I feel confident when I say, "I'm fine. I just sat up too quickly."

I stand. "Are you sure that you want to go away to college? You could still change your mind and go to a local university. You're a big help around here. I'm going to miss that and you taking those famous, or should I say infamous candid pictures every ten seconds," I say with a chuckle before I turn serious again. "I didn't realize that I was so tired. The nap helped. Thank you." I pull her into a hug. "I really am going to miss having you around here," I say to her before I break the hold that I have on her.

I get to the doorway, headed for the girls' room when Mattie speaks again.

"I'm going to miss being here. It's the first time in a very long while that I've felt like I had a mom and dad. Being with my father isn't going to be the same." I see a tear roll down her cheek.

I move back to her. Each of my hands grabs one of hers and I look her in the eye.

"You may not be living here in this house with us, but you'll always be our daughter and welcome here or wherever we are ... anytime. We aren't going to quit being your mom and dad just because you aren't living here, you know." Now I'm crying, too.

"Aren't we supposed to do this the day that I actually leave?" Mattie says, trying to force herself to smile.

"Probably," I say with a chuckle.

"You'd better go get Sami tucked in," she says, regaining her composure.

"Yeah," I reply, smiling at her.

I hug Mattie once more before leaving to go tuck in Sami and begin the nightly reading routine with Abigail and Ty so that I can get everyone to bed.