Once again, I apologize for the long delay although, this time, the reason was more enjoyable. I've been on vacation to the Outer Banks of North Carolina for the last week. No internet access but lots of sun, surf and seafood. It was a wonderful break. I also wanted to thank all of you for your patience, understanding and kind words of encouragement. I was feeling stressed and guilty for not being able to update in a timely fashion and it added to the burden from work. Your messages helped alleviate all that and I'm grateful to have such considerate people reading my story. Thank you again.
Chapter 36
Wednesday,
Grace Memorial Hospital
San Diego, CA
0825 Local
Don nodded to Tomas Ruiz as he walked up to the entrance of Grace Memorial. The San Diego agent had agreed to a joint interview of the JAG officers. Jurisdiction wasn't really a question but courtesy was another thing. The two agents fell into step as they entered the hospital. Don looked up at Ruiz. The other agent was a good ten years older, long and lean with a spattering of grey running through his close-cropped hair. "I wanted to thank you again for getting my people out of there."
Tomas waved a hand, "De nada, how is your brother?"
"Still sleeping when I left," Don smiled, "I think the stress wore him out." The hour or three Charlie had spent on the phone with Amita had probably also contributed to his brother's fatigue but Don didn't think Ruiz needed to know that.
"This was an odd case," Ruiz commented while they waited for the elevator. He looked over at Don, "Colonel MacKenzie's abduction was tied to the sabotage attempt on the Nimitz? What did they think she knew?"
"I have no idea," Don shrugged, "I'm hoping the Colonel might be able to tell us." He was more than a little curious to hear the JAG officers' version of what happened. Actually, he was interested in how Harm and Mac would dance around certain issues with Agent Ruiz. Charlie had been almost comically uncomfortable relating some portions of the story. Don was well aware of his brother's attitude towards anything outside the realms of science and math. He was pretty sure it had inadvertently colored some of the facts.
"I understand you had some excitement of your own up in LA," Ruiz glanced over at Don as they got on the elevator. "Same group?"
"Looks like it," Don replied. "Apparently, they decided to try for downtown LA at the same time as the Nimitz. We figured out where they were planning to strike and got there ahead of them."
Ruiz whistled softly, "Nice work. They go down easy?"
"Not quite," Don snorted. "Some of those guys were hardcore. They preferred dying to being caught." He frowned a little, that hadn't been entirely true. The head guy, after leading them on a extended game of hide and seek, had surrendered meekly enough. It had been a tense moment when they'd finally cornered him. Both he and Walker had been certain that the man had the bio-weapon and would use it as a last resort. They'd been right and wrong. He did have two vials but he didn't attempt to use them or even bargain with them. It hadn't made sense but at the time, Don's feeling of relief had overpowered that niggling thread of unease. Now it was reasserting itself. What had they missed? It had taken them over an hour to catch the guy. He'd never left the sewer system as far as they could tell so what could he have done? As soon as Don finished here, he'd call David.
Ruiz was shaking his head, "Zealots are the worst. There's no reasoning with them." Don nodded silently, still somewhat preoccupied with his thoughts. The elevator came to a halt and the doors opened. The agents walked down the corridor.
Don pointed, "Room 533. Commander Rabb is probably there, too, so we can talk to them both at the same time." He couldn't help frowning again. Bander was still in the wind, in a manner of speaking. Don knew where he was but, at this particular moment, had not one shred of solid evidence that would allow him to arrest the man. Harm had stayed with Mac not only out of a sense of love but because Don knew he was afraid Bander might make another attempt on the Colonel.
They reached the door. Ruiz hung back a little as Don tapped on the door and then opened it a bit, "Harm? Mac? Is this a good time?" Hearing the quiet assurances, he motioned to Ruiz and walked into the room. Stopping at the foot of the bed, Don smiled at Mac, "You're looking good." He directed a semi-serious smirk at Harm, "You, on the other hand... "
"Shut up, Eppes," Harm retorted good-naturedly as he stood up to shake hands with Ruiz, "Good to see you again." He gestured towards the chair, "Either of you want a seat? I can sit on the bed."
Both agents shook their heads. Don gave Mac a curious look. She was staring at him as her hand drifted up to gingerly rub the yellowing bruise on her forehead, "Mac? Something wrong?" He saw Harm half-turn to shoot her a worried look.
"I don't - there was something - ," Mac's eyes suddenly widened in alarm, "Megan! Oh god, is she - ?"
Don held up his hands in a soothing gesture, "It's okay, she's okay. They're releasing her from the hospital today. You know about her eyes?"
Mac nodded as she leaned back into the pillows with a deep sense of relief. She could feel Harm lightly rubbing her shoulder, "They - He - told me she'd died."
"He who?" Don leaned forward a little, his hopes rising.
Mac frowned in concentration. Many of her memories were jumbled or had that almost out of focus, dreamlike quality to them. "No name - an older guy, stocky, short gray hair." She shook her head in frustration, "I think. It's all fuzzy." Mac looked at Don again, "Megan's eyesight, was it permanent?"
"No," Don tried to curb his disappointment although he'd been half expecting this. Charlie had been very clear that Mac had been affected by the concussion.
"Do you think you could pick him out of a lineup?" Ruiz cut in, looking as frustrated as Mac.
Mac stared at the other agent for a long moment before giving an apologetic shrug, "I don't know. I don't think I could be certain enough for a trial. I'm sorry."
"What do you remember?" Don asked gently while shooting a look at Ruiz. Knowing Mac, pressuring her would be counter-productive. "Take your time," he added for good measure.
"I - it's all in fragments," Mac felt Harm take her hand and give it a reassuring squeeze. "There was a dark room. Megan was there. I don't remember being moved but the next thing I know I'm in a small bedroom. That man kept coming in to talk to me."
"About what?" Harm asked after glancing at Don. He could tell the agent was being as understanding as he could. The San Diego agent, however, wasn't doing a very good job at concealing his impatience.
Mac could only shake her head again, "I remember feeling scared - terrified really, but I'm not sure about what. He gave me something, I think, and everything got worse." She looked at Harm, "I lost time after that - seven hours and thirteen minutes. I'm not sure what happened except that when I finally came back to myself, I was outside in the dark."
Don's eyebrows lifted slightly in surprise. Charlie had said she'd escaped but neither he nor Harm had any idea how it had come about. Don had been hoping Mac could shed some light on the subject. Considering what Megan had said - and Rabb, for that matter - he couldn't help wondering about a supernatural aspect. He shifted a little at the thought, folding his arms across his chest. When it came right down to it, Don didn't truly believe in any of that paranormal crap and the fact that he was even entertaining the notion was making him as uncomfortable as Charlie had been. Hell, he'd settle for something even remotely tangible to hang his hat on - say an isolated group of seven height-challenged miners or a large white rabbit with a waistcoat and pocket watch. Don tipped his head to the side, "You think someone had a change of heart and helped you escape?" Considering what he knew of Bander, he didn't really think it was a possibility. Don didn't believe there were too many people out there who would deliberately cross that man even at a distance and to do it virtually under his nose sounded like suicide.
Harm snorted irritably, "I don't think you could call that help. Have you been out in that area? It's rugged as hell. Mac's lucky she didn't break her neck."
At the same time, Mac was shaking her head, "I don't know. Nothing makes much sense although I'm pretty sure that old man didn't want to let me go. I can't see how the two guys that came after me would have defied him like that."
"So - what? You think that somehow, despite a concussion and supposedly being drugged, you managed to escape on your own? From three guys? Are you kidding?" Ruiz folded his arms as he glared at the woman in front of him. Something odd was going on, he could feel it.
"Look, for all I know, the tooth fairy plucked me out of there," Mac snapped back. "I told you. It's a blank." She could feel Harm starting to take umbrage and squeezed his hand. Mac didn't blame Agent Ruiz for his skepticism but the fact was, she was telling the truth. She couldn't recall how the hell she'd gotten out. Of course, she was dead certain it was Avis and Kate who'd managed it but, technically speaking, that could still be considered conjecture. She hadn't had a chance to question either of them about it. In any event, there was no way Mac intended to offer that explanation to anyone other than Harm.
"And you have no idea why they grabbed you in the first place?" Ruiz continued to press. There was something here the JAG officer wasn't saying and he was going to get to it, one way or another.
Mac shook her head again, "They were after McKlellan. I remember that much."
"Megan told us that McKlellan was dead," Don interrupted whatever Ruiz was going to say. He could tell Rabb was growing more and more annoyed.
"He is?" Mac's eyebrows rose in surprise and then she paused, clearly searching her memory. After a moment, she nodded slowly, "He is."
"You saw them kill him?" Ruiz straightened up a little. Finally, they were getting somewhere. Maybe MacKenzie had been traumatized from witnessing the murder. It probably wasn't something a lawyer saw firsthand.
"I guess, maybe, I can't say for sure," Mac shrugged helplessly. "I know he's dead, that's all."
Ruiz glanced over at Eppes to gauge his reaction. He knew the LA agent was looking at Carson Bander. Last he'd heard, no one had found McKlellan's body and now MacKenzie's testimony had been rendered useless. No prosecutor in his right mind would put her on the stand. His eyes narrowed. Suddenly, these memory lapses were seeming all too convenient. Bander was a rich, powerful man and the military wasn't known for the generosity of its pay scale. Perhaps MacKenzie's escape wasn't a mystery at all. His expression hardened, "How much is Bander paying you?"
"What?!" Mac, Harm and Don all spoke at once.
Immediately, Don took a step, placing himself between Ruiz and Harm. The Naval Commander looked astonished and furious while Mac just looked shocked. Don turned towards Ruiz, "That was out of line."
"Was it?" Ruiz demanded. "Tell me she didn't just tank any sort of case against Bander."
"C'mon, man, our case doesn't hinge on the Colonel's testimony. We already knew from Megan that she had a head injury," Don countered, while making sure Harm was staying put. Fortunately, it looked like Mac had a firm grip on Rabb's arm, keeping him in place. Don rubbed the back of his neck. The tension in the room was stifling.
"Jackass."
Mac stiffened slightly and then gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head. Kate had sounded angry and Mac didn't want her reacting any more than she wanted Harm to lose control. She didn't know if Ruiz was serious or if he was merely trying to provoke. She'd be damned if she'd allow him any satisfaction one way or the other.
"What are the two guys we caught saying about it?" Harm broke in with a scowl after shooting a glare at Don. It had taken a real effort to come out with that question rather than what he really wanted to say. That thick-headed SOB! Mac's hold on him was the only reason he hadn't thrown the San Diego agent out on his ass.
"Nothing," Ruiz all but growled, "They lawyered up as soon as we took them into custody."
"They have a lawyer already? Who?" Harm continued to frown. Dammit, he'd been hoping at least one of them would roll over and give them Bander.
"A high-powered shark by the name of Manny Orwitz," Ruiz shook his head while glancing at Eppes. The LA agent stared back wordlessly. Ruiz lifted his hands slightly in mute apology. He'd mentioned to Eppes that the two had refused to talk but hadn't spoken of Orwitz. Judging from the other agent's demeanor, that had been a mistake. His tone became more conciliatory, "He was there within an hour of our reaching headquarters. Not that either one was saying much before but neither one has let out a peep since he talked to them."
"Do you know who hired him?" Don let a touch of ice color his voice. Charlie had told him how rattled both men had been after their capture. He'd hoped to capitalize on that, which now sounded impossible. He bet a month's salary that Bander was funding Orwitz and that the lawyer's legal advice had also included a warning of the consequences for ratting out the old man. He'd bet another month's salary that they wouldn't be able to prove it.
Ruiz shrugged, "Manny's not likely to say. I know it's not those two. Their combined annual income would barely cover his retainer."
"Do they know they could face the death penalty for the attempted murder of Agent Reeves?" Don asked, looking for any sort of leverage. He was supposed to go to the San Diego headquarters to meet up with those two. It would be pointless if he couldn't get them talking.
"I'm not sure," Ruiz admitted as he checked his watch. He looked back at Don, ignoring the JAG officers, "I need to get back to the office. Do you want to come with me?" He wasn't surprised when Eppes declined. Since he had inadvertently taken on the 'bad cop' persona, maybe the LA agent would have better success with MacKenzie by playing good cop. Even though Eppes was working with the two military lawyers, Ruiz knew his reputation for integrity. He would put the case above any sort of friendship.
After watching Ruiz leave the room, Don turned back towards Harm and Mac, folding his arms once again, "Okay, now will one of you tell me exactly what the hell went on out there?"
Wednesday,
Liwanu Enterprises
Los Angeles, CA
0900 Local
Margery Threetrails stood for a moment outside Carson Bander's door. He'd been in the office since yesterday, his mood irascible. While he'd pulled all-nighters before when some deal or other required his personal attention, this was the first time she'd seen him this angry for this long. She'd offered her help in the beginning and been thoroughly rebuffed. Now she was wondering if a second offer would have the same result. Margery took a deep breath, tightening her grip on the bag containing the Bear's favorite meal from a nearby restaurant. The man needed to eat and perhaps it would give her an opening.
She knew it had to have had something to do with his plan and that it couldn't have been anything good. The visit from the FBI earlier and the news about the death of JohnnyD, combined with the fire that had leveled their Inglewood factory was enough to tell her that things had gone terribly wrong. Margery assumed he was regrouping. The Bear was a tenacious man and would doubtless be attempting to salvage something out of the mess. Would he let her help? There was no way to know. Resolutely, she knocked on his door, wincing a little at the sharp 'What?'
"I've brought you some food. You've haven't had a decent meal since you've been back." After walking in, Margery decided a firm, no-nonsense tone would be best. This one time, she would not behave as a subordinate.
Bander swallowed the sarcastic and angry reply that had first come to his lips. Margery hadn't done anything to merit that sort of churlish behavior. She was the daughter he'd never had, trite as that sounded, and he knew she was covertly offering help along with the food. "Thank you," was all he finally said and he watched as she placed the bag on his desk. They eyed each other for a moment before he ducked his head a little, "It's quite possible that I'm going to be arrested. I have no intention of having them take you as well."
Margery sucked in a breath. He'd sounded so matter-of-fact, something she'd not seen before when he'd suffered a defeat. She leaned forward a bit, resting her hands on his desk, "Shouldn't that be my decision?"
"Tomorrow, possibly, but not today." Bander smiled at her confusion and pulled a paper out of the stack. "At the end of business today, I'm officially retired. My last act as CEO is to appoint my successor - you. Congratulations, my dear. I know Liwanu will be in good hands."
Margery stiffened in surprise, staring from the paper to Bander and back again. Her mind was racing as she tried to make sense of this abrupt change. He was distancing himself from Liwanu and her, creating a buffer for whatever he had in mind to do next. They both understood that this change in status did nothing to diminish his influence and power. Finally her eyes narrowed. As unbelievable as it seemed, his plans must have met with complete disaster. Whatever remedy he was considering had to be dangerous enough that he felt the need to separate himself from his life's work. "Tell me what happened. Let me help."
"No."
There was a finality to his tone that told her he had no intention of yielding. She huffed inwardly. Well, the path to hell was paved with good intentions. "Who killed JohnnyD?"
His eyebrows lifted in surprise. After a moment's pause, Bander glanced to the side, "It was a warrior's death, undeserved as it turned out."
Margery slowly sat down in one of the chairs in front of his desk, as she once again tried to decipher exactly what he was - and wasn't - saying. The FBI had said they'd found Johnny's body in the burned out factory but they hadn't really mentioned how he'd died... She looked at Bander, "He started the fire at Inglewood?" Kidnapping, murder and the attempted murder of a Federal agent - Johnny had been busy. The news had mentioned two fatalities at the fire but nothing about a survivor. The Feds were no doubt keeping that under wraps.
Bander nodded slowly, pleased and a little worried about how much she might already know. Finding someone to take care of MacKenzie was proving harder than he'd thought. Ironically, JohnnyD had always been his contact for these sorts of things. He'd put out some cautious feelers and had had some equally cautious responses. Now he needed to sort through them. He couldn't help the trace of bitterness in his voice, "Betrayals must be answered."
Margery stood up, "Always. How do you want to announce your retirement?" She needed time to think all this through. He'd said enough, combined with what she already knew, to give her an idea of what was going on. How she would respond was another question altogether. The company was hers now and its survival and health had to be her paramount concern. The Bear would expect nothing less. With Liwanu being privately held, there were no shareholders to answer to so the transition would be a little smoother.
"Call an emergency meeting for this afternoon. I'll tell everyone then," Bander replied approvingly. Although this was happening sooner than he'd anticipated, it was obvious that Margery was ready for the challenge. While still deferring to him, she was already moving to consolidate her power. There would be those that opposed her and he could almost feel sorry for them. There would be little left of them when she was done. He'd trained her well. Bander watched her nod and walk out of the room before opening the bags of food. Hopefully, he would be equally successful.
Wednesday,
FBI headquarters,
Los Angeles, CA
1530 Local
Don pulled into his parking space in the garage and glanced in the rearview mirror before turning around to look in the back seat. Harm was attempting to wake Mac up. The Colonel had dozed off shortly after they'd started and, apparently, had been sleeping soundly. "You sure you don't want to go back to your hotel? Her doctor did say to take it easy."
"I'm fine." Mac answered sleepily as she reluctantly pushed upright from her comfortable position nestled against Harm's side. It was bad enough that she was an unreliable witness in the case against Bander. The least she could do was help find another way to nail the guy.
"Okay," Don shrugged a little towards Charlie as both brothers got out of the car and received one in return. By now, they were well-acquainted with the Marine's stubbornness. Don snorted to himself as he opened Mac's door for her and offered a hand. His brother and Harm had been equally stubborn about getting back to work so the Colonel didn't exactly have a corner on being mule-headed. She had, however, been remarkably candid with him after Ruiz had left. The problem was that no one in their right mind would believe half of it. For the record, Don was going with Charlie's version of events.
His interview with the two suspects had been about as unproductive as he'd feared. Neither denied that they'd been chasing Mac although their lawyer had the unmitigated gall to allege that the shootings at Mac, Harm and Charlie were a misunderstanding. The men had been shooting at jackrabbits. Since forensics were impossible out there, the ridiculous explanation had to stand. No reasonable person would believe it, but Don had had enough experience with juries to realize that reasonableness didn't always enter into the equation. The oddest thing about the entire interview was the sense he got that both men were afraid of Mac. James Swift had been the more frightened of the two. He'd be sure to mention that to the prosecutor. It was possible the mere sight of Mac during the trial might rattle the man enough to break his story.
The ride up in the elevator was quiet. They were all tired. They entered the bullpen, exchanging greetings with various agents as they made their way to Don's area. Don broke into a grin and he picked up the pace when he spotted a familiar figure standing with David and Colby. "Megan!" He indulged in a brief hug, mindful of the office atmosphere, and then eyed her critically, "Why aren't you home resting?"
He didn't get an answer as Harm, Mac and Charlie joined the group. After greeting the three, Megan commandeered Mac, ushering her into the conference room with an "Excuse us, guys," tossed over her shoulder. Don watched them leave and then turned to Larry, "How is she?"
Larry rubbed his face, his gaze still on the women. Once they'd disappeared into the conference room, he turned his attention to Don, "Remarkable, as always. Her eyesight is improving daily but her hands and knees are still quite sore. She's been terribly worried about Colonel MacKenzie but you've rectified that situation." He looked over at Harm and Charlie and smiled, "I should say, you two rectified it. Well done." Larry tilted his head slightly as he focused on Charlie, "I trust you've spoken to Amita?"
"Constantly," Don interrupted in a dry tone, causing his brother to blush slightly while the other men smiled. He looked over at David and Colby, "Anything new on our terrorists?"
David shook his head, "Of the two we have in custody, the only guy talking is the one who doesn't know squat. It's kind of weird. It's pretty obvious he hates the head guy, Husam, so I don't know how he became part of the group. It looks like he was hired as the muscle but why take a guy who's that hostile? There had to be other choices out there."
"Unless Husam wasn't the one doing the hiring," Harm pointed out. "It could be that Bander put the whole group together and expected them to work with each other. The guy who's talking is a mercenary, isn't he?"
"Yeah, his name's Harvey Mendelson," Colby spoke up. "He's got the usual resume for a mercenary. Special Ops during the Gulf War, mustered out and kicked around the world for a while before winding up in Somalia. From there, it looks like he's gone from one trouble spot to another."
"Does he know who hired him?" Don had to ask even though he knew Colby would have mentioned it first if there'd been a solid connection to Bander. As he expected, the younger agent shook his head.
"I've put the word out to some of my buddies in Army Intel and Special Ops," Colby offered. "There had to be other guys approached out there. Maybe Bander slipped up with one of them." It was a long shot but you never knew.
"He did finger Husam for killing Fawwaz, for what that's worth," David added. "It seems the kid overheard a conversation between Rashid and Husam and put two and two together."
"How did McKlellan fit in?" Harm asked.
David shook his head, "Mendelson didn't recognize his photo but he did say Husam was providing them with all sorts of intel about Ventura. Security plans and personnel, computer codes, maintenance schedules - that sort of thing. You know it had to be McKlellan."
Harm nodded slowly, his expression hard, "So if, by some chance, he's still alive, he would be facing the death penalty for treason." He sighed, glancing around the office, "I'd better update General Cresswell again. McKlellan's family is already out for blood over his being missing." He didn't bother mentioning that both JAG and the FBI were the objects of their ire. Everyone here was aware of the political fallout.
- - - - -
Megan shut the door and then turned around to scrutinize the Colonel carefully. She was wearing a t-shirt and warm-up pants. There was a fading bruise on her forehead and any number of small scrapes and bruises visible on her arms. No doubt her legs had the same damage. She seemed thinner as well although her eyes were clear. Only a small telltale crease between her eyebrows betrayed a headache.
Mac, for her part, was eyeing the agent up and down. Megan's eyes were hidden behind a pair of sunglasses, telling her that the agent's eyesight hadn't yet recovered fully. The bruise on her jaw was barely visible under skillfully applied makeup and both hands were wrapped in gauze. From the stiffness in her walk, Mac suspected either her feet or knees had been similarly injured.
"Are you okay?" Both women spoke at once and then smiled. Megan waved a hand at the chairs, "Let's sit, my knees are killing me."
Mac nodded and they both took a seat. Leaning forward, Mac spoke first, her eyes dropping to the floor, "I'm sorry I left you." She glanced up at Megan, "Can you tell me what happened exactly? A lot of it is a blur."
Megan leaned back, tipping her head to the side, "Only if you promise to stop feeling responsible. Neither of us had much control over the situation." After accepting Mac's somewhat reluctant nod, the agent glanced around the room and then leaned forward herself, lowering her voice, "Are they here with you now?"
Mac blinked in surprise and then held still for a moment. She was getting better at picking up both Kate and Avis' presence. Practice, part of her noted wryly. "They're here." She nodded, then admitting, "I haven't had much of chance to talk to them since Harm and Charlie found me."
"Then there's no time like the present," Megan smiled and then addressed the air between them, "I know I said this before, but thanks, Kate. I owe you my life."
Mac eyed her curiously, "Can you hear Kate?" She knew Harm couldn't but Charlie could - when he chose to listen.
"You're welcome," Kate answered as Megan was shaking her head.
The agent grinned ruefully, her hand going up to rub the back of her head, "She found another way to communicate." Megan gave Mac a curious look when the Colonel chuckled, "What?"
Mac kept grinning, "Kate's boss at NCIS, Jethro Gibbs, is famous for head-slapping his agents when he thinks they're getting off-track."
Megan grinned, too, "Well, it worked. That and pulling me here, there and everywhere. I never would have gotten out on my own."
Mac sobered, "The man that was holding me, told me you were dead. He - apologized," she added slowly as another fragment of memory surfaced, "said he didn't know about the fire until it was too late."
Megan nodded sympathetically, "I'm sorry you had to go through that. It was close." She held up her hands for a moment, "I was crawling at the end." She eyed the Colonel, "What about you? What happened after they took you out of the room?"
"I have no idea," Mac shook her head and then glanced from side to side, "But I'd like to know. Avis? Kate?"
Avis' voice was soft as she began, "One of them injected you with a sedative as soon as they removed you from the room. I wasn't fast enough to stop him. I'm sorry, it nearly killed you."
"I had that jerk by the throat when the old man put a gun to your head and told us to stop," Kate added in a growl, remembering her frustrated anger.
Mac's eyes widened in shock and, at Megan's persistent nudging, numbly repeated what Avis and Kate had said. For the next thirty minutes, the full story of her ordeal unfolded.
- - - - -
Colby glanced into the conference room where the women had been sequestered for the last fifteen minutes, "Any idea what's going on in there?" Charlie and Larry were off to the side, talking quietly while Larry waited for Megan.
"Catching up on everything, I would guess," Harm shrugged off-handedly. Since Megan fully believed in Kate and Avis' existence, he figured they were part of the conversation. That worked for him. Mac would fill him in later. He looked at David and Don, "So what's our next move?"
"I don't know about you, but I've just been hired to assassinate a Lt. Col. Sarah MacKenzie, USMC." FBI agent and one of the top four snipers in the world, Ian Edgerton leaned against a doorframe and took another sip of his coffee.