Shenandoah Valley
Northern Virginia
0830 Local
Avis pushed open the door to Sarah's room with her hip. She was carrying a tray of food that she had liberated from Effie, whom she'd met in the hallway. Looking for Corinna, she saw that the older woman was asleep in a wingback chair, her feet propped up on a small footstool. Avis sat the tray on the dresser and moved to the other side of the bed to check on Sarah. The brunette was sleeping also, Avis was pleased to note that the feverish flush was gone. Leaning down, she placed the back of her hand lightly on Sarah's forehead. It was cool to the touch.
Mac's eyes opened slowly and she gave the young woman a tired smile, "Good morning."
"Good morning to you," Avis smiled back, keeping her voice low. She didn't want to disturb Corinna. "Feel like eating a little?"
Mac nodded and began trying to push herself upright with one hand. "Let me," Avis commanded. She got Mac leaning forward and quickly rearranged the pillows before letting her settle back. Retrieving the tray, she positioned it on the bed and then sat down next to it. Avis picked up a bowl of what looked like cream of wheat and scooped out a spoonful, "Open up."
Giving the spoon a somewhat jaundiced look, Mac frowned slightly at Avis, "What is that?"
"Porridge." She smiled at the look on Mac's face, "You haven't had anything solid in almost four days and you're not starting now. First, you'll have porridge, later on a little soup and if all goes well, some toasted bread and tea."
Mac swallowed the spoonful and made a face, "May I, at least, feed myself?"
"No," Avis gave her another spoonful and arched an eyebrow, "You need to eat this. I'll not have you feeding it to the cat."
"Practicing for my first grandchild?"
They both looked over to see Corinna watching with amusement. Avis grinned, "Of course, how am I doing?" Mac rolled her eyes and accepted another spoonful.
"I believe you're getting the knack," Corinna chuckled. She watched quietly until Avis had finished and then continued in a more serious tone, "I need to talk to you both about some of the things I've learned." She nodded to herself as she watched the two exchange glances. "First, I've spent a good bit of time talking to Axel... and Mary Patrick." She paused for a moment, taking in Avis' somewhat shocked expression and Sasha's more guarded one. "One thing is quite clear. Someone unlocked the doors and gave Mary Patrick the scissors. What isn't as clear is what these persons or person was hoping to accomplish." She raised an eyebrow at Avis, "You know how unpredictable your aunt can be. She could have very easily stayed in the parlor. These violent spells don't come that often. Or, I should say, she's not normally violent without cause. That cause usually has something to do with Yankee soldiers. Since there aren't any around, it's somewhat confusing that she came all the way to the dance and singled out Miss Dzurick. Of course... you would know better than I what might goad Mary Patrick into such an action."
Mac took a quick look at Avis, the young woman was somewhat paler but she remained composed. She also seemed to be waiting for something. 'The other shoe', Mac thought wryly to herself as she glanced back at Corinna. This was the first time she'd heard anyone, outside of Avis, mention a family connection with Mary Patrick or allude to their family 'gift'. She braced herself when Mrs. Simpson's focus shifted to her.
"And you, Miss Dzurick," Corinna's stare was piercing, "Are you aware that your accent disappears when you're delirious? She didn't mention that the young woman had also rambled on in several different languages. She watched the two exchange glances again and sighed, "Will one of you kindly tell me the truth?"
Avis finally spoke up, "All right, Corinna, but first I want you to know that part of our duplicity was to protect you. I didn't want to give anyone any ammunition against you."
Corinna gave her a look, "You mean Eudora Dickerson. I can handle that sorry excuse for a woman." Her eyes narrowed, "Does Avril know?"
Avis nodded, "I told him the morning after the attack. I'll keep no secrets from him."
Corinna smiled at her, surprising both Avis and Mac, "My dear, every woman should keep a few secrets. Men have a hard enough time dealing with the obvious. Now... enough pussyfooting about, let's have the truth." She folded her arms and waited.
Mac jumped in before Avis could start, "Corinna, my name is Sarah MacKenzie and prior to coming here, I spent seven weeks with the Union army."
Looking aghast, Corinna blurted out, "You mean you're a... "
Mac shook her head as Avis got out an emphatic 'No!'. She closed her eyes briefly and let the dizziness pass. She was still light-headed enough to make too much motion inadvisable. She put a hand on Avis' arm and continued, "No. I'd been in an accident and I found myself lost and alone in this Valley. I'd been wandering for the better part of a day when I stumbled into a skirmish. Partisans, I think, trying to raid a supply train. The Yankees drove them off and, well, 'captured' me." She smiled ruefully, "The commanding officer accused me of being a... um... camp-follower as well. I lost my temper, yelled at him and tried to leave."
"What happened?" Corinna was fascinated.
"I knocked down three of his men before it got to be too much and I fainted. When I woke up, I discovered they had taken me along in one of the wagons. The commander, Colonel Rabb, turned out to be a gentleman after all. When he discovered that I didn't know how to return home and didn't know anyone in the Valley, he arranged for me to stay within the protection of his regiment. I became a sort of mascot for them." Mac fell silent, talking about Josiah was once again stirring up dangerous feelings. She thought she'd put him behind her.
"But how did you wind up with Avis?"
Seeing the pensive look on Mac's face, Avis took over the narrative, "That part of the story we told was mostly true. Except that Sarah was abducted from the camp and it wasn't her driver that was killed, it was one of the kidnappers. He'd had a change of heart and tried to help her escape. His two partners killed him for it and thought they had killed her. Deacon found her while he was giving Thomas a ride home and brought her to me. I'm trying to get her home. We thought it would be easier for the community to accept her if they thought she was a foreigner. Since Sarah speaks a number of languages fluently, we decided on Russian."
Corinna rubbed her chin slowly, "When you said 'easier for the community', you meant easier for me, didn't you?" She fell silent. Mac glanced over at Avis, who shrugged slightly. It was anybody's guess how Corinna would react now.
Outside the door, Effie crept quietly away. She hadn't been able to hear everything, but she'd heard enough. It would be worth good money to some folks to learn that the high-falutin' Sasha Dzurick was actually Sarah MacKenzie and nothing more than a common Yankee whore.
Harm's Apartment North of Union Station 0500 Local
Harm sipped his coffee and stared out into the pre-dawn darkness. He hadn't been able to sleep for more than a couple of hours at a stretch. Nightmares would force him awake. He'd finally given up and put some coffee on. He was going to need quite a bit of it today. Goddammit, where was she? What had happened? He raked his hand through his hair. Yesterday had been an exercise in futility. He and Sturgis had gone to Palos and talked to Master Chief Bollings. Well, they had attempted to talk to the man, it had been hard to get a word in edgewise. If the consequences hadn't been so serious, it would amused him to imagine his no-nonsense Marine trying to ride herd on the overly garrulous Master Chief. As it was, Harm was amazed that the old fellow wasn't dead. Mac had shown incredible restraint. At any rate, it had taken them an hour and a half to break away from 'Tribby' and in the end, he'd been no help at all. He couldn't even be sure about the time the pretty Marine Colonel had left.
There was no way to retrace Mac's steps. According to Sturgis, she had talked to the Admiral around 1750 and learned that she had to get back to JAG to replace Major Hardesty on the bench. She'd been on her cellphone. Sturgis had gotten the phone records - it was the last call she'd made. Theoretically, Mac could have already been driving but Harm was fairly sure she would have called before she left. Apparently, her original plans had been to spend the night out this way and drive back in the morning. Knowing she had to preside over a case, Harm figured she wouldn't want to waste any time. She'd probably planned on driving straight to JAG to pick up the case file so she would be prepared in the morning.
He'd pulled up the meteorological reports for Thursday while en route from California. Thunderstorms had rolled through the Blue Ridge Mountains beginning approximately at 1840. There'd been a series of them and they'd gotten nasty, dumping several inches of rain in a short time. Straight-line winds had been clocked at 50 mph and there'd been a multitude of lightning strikes. There'd been trees down, mud slides and flash flooding. Harm didn't think Mac would try to drive through a storm that bad, she wasn't an idiot. More than likely, she'd stopped somewhere to wait it out. It was doubtful, however, that she had stopped immediately. He was willing to bet that Mac probably slowed down and continued on until she was convinced the storm was growing worse. Harm estimated that she might have been driving anywhere from 40 to 90 minutes before she stopped. Allowing for lower speeds on the local roads, that would put her anywhere from 20 to 55 miles from Palos. It was a huge and difficult area to search. What worried him were the breaks between the storms. What if she thought the worst was past and then got caught in the next one?
He and Sturgis had pored over the map, trying to decide what route Mac might have taken. They were both in agreement with the Admiral's assessment that the Interstate was out. Construction and rush hour traffic would have kept her from trying it. The problem was that there were so many ways she could have gone. In the end, he'd chosen to go through Harrisonburg. They had stopped along the way at every sheriff's department and police station. They were all aware that Mac was missing and no one had seen any sign of her.
Frustrated, Harm put down his coffee mug and got up to pace. How could she have vanished so thoroughly? Someone had to have seen her. She must have stopped somewhere for gas and to eat. Mac rarely skipped meals if she could help it. Dammit, military personnel weren't that common in the Valley, surely someone would have noticed and remembered a female Marine officer. Suddenly, he stopped pacing. Oh Christ, what if she'd run into some of those anti-government nutcases? Her uniform would be like a red flag. He turned around and glared at his phone. Why the hell didn't Webb call? When you didn't want him around, you were tripping over the goddamn spook. Harm took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. If domestic lunatics had grabbed Mac, Webb wouldn't know about it anyway. That was the FBI's bailiwick. He checked his watch, it was only 0530. When he got over to the office, he'd give SA Novak a call. Since the Fibbies had gotten some of the glory for breaking up 'Archangel' last year, Harm figured they owed him and Mac a favor or two.
Glancing out the window, he saw that the sky was beginning to lighten. 'Day Four', he thought to himself bleakly. Not for the first time, he was grateful he wasn't cursed with Mac's time sense. Knowing to the minute how long she'd been gone would have been gut-wrenching. If... when he found Mac, he'd apologize for the times he put her through something like this. With a sigh, Harm turned towards his bedroom, he had plenty of time for a run before Sturgis showed up.
He smiled wryly to himself as he changed into shorts and a tank top. His friends and colleagues had banded together to save him from himself. They really expected him to go off the deep end. Sturgis, with Bobbie's blessing, had appointed himself chief watchdog. He'd stuck with him all weekend and then announced he would be giving Harm a ride to work in the morning. Both Bud and Harriet had called him on his cell to commiserate, offer their support and tell him that they'd be there for him at JAG on Monday. All in all, it had been a very unsubtle approach to let him know they weren't going to let him trash his career if they could help it. It was a heartwarming and ultimately futile gesture. His career wasn't worth a tinker's damn if he lost Mac in the process. He would report in and do his job but at the first inkling of a lead to Mac's whereabouts, he'd be out of there, orders be damned.
Shenandoah Valley Northern Virginia 1020 Local
Mac paced slowly between Avis and Avril. This was the first time she'd been up and dressed since her fever broke three days ago. She felt unsteady, like she was learning to walk again. They were going back to Avis' farm. No one was particularly happy. Corinna had been upset by their revelations. She hadn't let it interfere with being a gracious hostess but she hadn't spent any more time with them than necessary. Avril had reassured Avis that this would pass. His mother had been forced to confront an unflattering facet of herself and it was taking time. He'd also agreed with Mac's decision not to let Corinna into the small cadre of people that were aware of the time-travel aspect. Best to let her think that the worst thing they had hidden was that Mac was from the wrong side of the Mason-Dixon line. He was going to tell the same thing to Matt Landers. Both he and Matt had developed a grudging respect for their foes - they shared a warrior's bond. Landers wouldn't be all that shocked. Trusting him with the complete truth was another thing. Avril loved Matt like a brother but he had no illusions about the man's ability to keep his mouth shut. Put him with friends, add a bit of whiskey and Matt would be blathering about everything.
Mac cast a surreptitious glance at Avis. Her lips were set in a thin line and she seemed to be entirely focused on making sure Mac didn't stumble or fall. That wasn't the case, of course. Word had come to town that a column of Yankee cavalry was approaching. Most of Early's troops were in Staunton, too far to arrive in time. It would be up to the local militia and Avril and Matt had volunteered to take command. Avis had been practically beside herself. She had tried once to dissuade both men, fully aware that she would fail to sway them from what they considered their duty. After that, to all outward appearances, she reverted to her calm composure. For Mac, however, the waves of worry and grief were almost palpable. She could only surmise that she'd become more sensitive to Avis' moods. Her sense of foreboding was growing but she couldn't tell if it was something she was experiencing on her own or if she was echoing what Avis was feeling. If Avril had noticed, he wasn't saying anything.
Corinna met them at the front door, nodding a silent greeting, and then following them outside as they walked over to Avis' buggy. Goodbyes were exchanged with Corinna unbending enough to give Avis a brief hug although she had yet to look Mac in the eye. It was uncomfortable and Mac found herself scanning their surroundings. There were only a few townspeople about and Mac was shocked to discover that they seemed to be regarding her with hostility. She glanced back at Corinna, had she betrayed them so quickly?
Then, there was no more time to think about it. Landers was lifting her into the buggy while Avril helped Avis in from the other side. The two men would ride escort to make sure the women arrived safely and then go join up with the militia. Mac heard Avril promise to return in two days. She couldn't help the cold little prickle that ran down her spine.
JAG Headquarters Falls Church, Virginia 0900 Local
AJ stared at the clock and then scowled at his phone. Jen Coates was filling in for Tiner today and was under strict orders to let him know the moment Rabb walked in the door. God help the Commander if he decided to go UA. Unable to sit any longer, the Admiral got up and moved over to stare out his window. He and Meredith had spent the weekend up in the Shenandoah. They'd found a bed and breakfast to spend the night in and gotten a large dose of local history from the proprietors. All of which was interesting and ultimately unproductive in finding his missing Chief of Staff. About the only thing to come out of that trip, other than Meredith's desire to to it again under better circumstances, was to truly grasp the immense difficulties of the search. While the mountains weren't that large, there were hundreds of little roads leading into and out of them. All it would take would be one wrong turn combined with a little bad luck and a person could vanish. Some of the undergrowth in those thousands of little ravines were dense enough to swallow all signs of a car. Unless someone came forward with a lead, it would require a damn miracle to find Mac.
"Admiral?" Jen's voice crackled over his intercom.
Chegwidden whirled away from the window, "Yes, Petty Officer?"
"Sir, Commander Rabb and Commander Turner just walked in," the relief in Coates' voice was evident. There'd been furious speculation in the bullpen about what the Commander would do when he found the Colonel was missing. Opinions were mixed, some thought he would blow off his career and go UA until he found her, others thought the discipline of the service was too deeply ingrained and that he would show up at the appointed time. A third group embraced both ideas, Rabb would show up and then go UA in his search. AJ owed much of his information on the current scuttlebutt to Gunny Walters and Jen Coates.
The speculation about Colonel MacKenzie's fate was starting to touch on the more morbid. It was the beginning of the fourth full day that she'd been missing. Half of the discussions now centered around how long an injured person might survive without medical care. AJ knew it wasn't meant to be callous. As officers went, Mac was rather popular with the staff. He figured it was their way of reassuring themselves. The Colonel was a tough-as-nails Marine, she could survive quite a lot. Hell, she already had. Stories were being re-circulated about the myriad of should-have-been-fatal scrapes that Rabb and MacKenzie had made it through.
The other half of the discussions dealt with revenge and the number of people who would gladly see the Colonel dead. Theories and suspects were bandied about, shot down and resurrected in new combinations. It was beginning to resemble a giant game of Clue. It didn't make it any easier for her friends, Bud was a case in point. This morning, the normally affable Lieutenant had jumped on a couple of yeomen after overhearing their conversation. AJ had pulled Roberts into his office to vent and then cool off. There he had found out that Bud had been engaged in his own relentless search. His had been via the Internet as he tracked down the whereabouts of anyone who might have had a grudge against the Colonel. He didn't look like he'd had a good night's sleep in days. If they weren't so damnably short-handed, Chegwidden would have sent him home right then.
AJ glared at the intercom, "Coates? Tell Rabb to report to my office in five." Neither one of them was going to enjoy what he was about to do but there was no point in putting it off.
Avis pushed open the door to Sarah's room with her hip. She was carrying a tray of food that she had liberated from Effie, whom she'd met in the hallway. Looking for Corinna, she saw that the older woman was asleep in a wingback chair, her feet propped up on a small footstool. Avis sat the tray on the dresser and moved to the other side of the bed to check on Sarah. The brunette was sleeping also, Avis was pleased to note that the feverish flush was gone. Leaning down, she placed the back of her hand lightly on Sarah's forehead. It was cool to the touch.
Mac's eyes opened slowly and she gave the young woman a tired smile, "Good morning."
"Good morning to you," Avis smiled back, keeping her voice low. She didn't want to disturb Corinna. "Feel like eating a little?"
Mac nodded and began trying to push herself upright with one hand. "Let me," Avis commanded. She got Mac leaning forward and quickly rearranged the pillows before letting her settle back. Retrieving the tray, she positioned it on the bed and then sat down next to it. Avis picked up a bowl of what looked like cream of wheat and scooped out a spoonful, "Open up."
Giving the spoon a somewhat jaundiced look, Mac frowned slightly at Avis, "What is that?"
"Porridge." She smiled at the look on Mac's face, "You haven't had anything solid in almost four days and you're not starting now. First, you'll have porridge, later on a little soup and if all goes well, some toasted bread and tea."
Mac swallowed the spoonful and made a face, "May I, at least, feed myself?"
"No," Avis gave her another spoonful and arched an eyebrow, "You need to eat this. I'll not have you feeding it to the cat."
"Practicing for my first grandchild?"
They both looked over to see Corinna watching with amusement. Avis grinned, "Of course, how am I doing?" Mac rolled her eyes and accepted another spoonful.
"I believe you're getting the knack," Corinna chuckled. She watched quietly until Avis had finished and then continued in a more serious tone, "I need to talk to you both about some of the things I've learned." She nodded to herself as she watched the two exchange glances. "First, I've spent a good bit of time talking to Axel... and Mary Patrick." She paused for a moment, taking in Avis' somewhat shocked expression and Sasha's more guarded one. "One thing is quite clear. Someone unlocked the doors and gave Mary Patrick the scissors. What isn't as clear is what these persons or person was hoping to accomplish." She raised an eyebrow at Avis, "You know how unpredictable your aunt can be. She could have very easily stayed in the parlor. These violent spells don't come that often. Or, I should say, she's not normally violent without cause. That cause usually has something to do with Yankee soldiers. Since there aren't any around, it's somewhat confusing that she came all the way to the dance and singled out Miss Dzurick. Of course... you would know better than I what might goad Mary Patrick into such an action."
Mac took a quick look at Avis, the young woman was somewhat paler but she remained composed. She also seemed to be waiting for something. 'The other shoe', Mac thought wryly to herself as she glanced back at Corinna. This was the first time she'd heard anyone, outside of Avis, mention a family connection with Mary Patrick or allude to their family 'gift'. She braced herself when Mrs. Simpson's focus shifted to her.
"And you, Miss Dzurick," Corinna's stare was piercing, "Are you aware that your accent disappears when you're delirious? She didn't mention that the young woman had also rambled on in several different languages. She watched the two exchange glances again and sighed, "Will one of you kindly tell me the truth?"
Avis finally spoke up, "All right, Corinna, but first I want you to know that part of our duplicity was to protect you. I didn't want to give anyone any ammunition against you."
Corinna gave her a look, "You mean Eudora Dickerson. I can handle that sorry excuse for a woman." Her eyes narrowed, "Does Avril know?"
Avis nodded, "I told him the morning after the attack. I'll keep no secrets from him."
Corinna smiled at her, surprising both Avis and Mac, "My dear, every woman should keep a few secrets. Men have a hard enough time dealing with the obvious. Now... enough pussyfooting about, let's have the truth." She folded her arms and waited.
Mac jumped in before Avis could start, "Corinna, my name is Sarah MacKenzie and prior to coming here, I spent seven weeks with the Union army."
Looking aghast, Corinna blurted out, "You mean you're a... "
Mac shook her head as Avis got out an emphatic 'No!'. She closed her eyes briefly and let the dizziness pass. She was still light-headed enough to make too much motion inadvisable. She put a hand on Avis' arm and continued, "No. I'd been in an accident and I found myself lost and alone in this Valley. I'd been wandering for the better part of a day when I stumbled into a skirmish. Partisans, I think, trying to raid a supply train. The Yankees drove them off and, well, 'captured' me." She smiled ruefully, "The commanding officer accused me of being a... um... camp-follower as well. I lost my temper, yelled at him and tried to leave."
"What happened?" Corinna was fascinated.
"I knocked down three of his men before it got to be too much and I fainted. When I woke up, I discovered they had taken me along in one of the wagons. The commander, Colonel Rabb, turned out to be a gentleman after all. When he discovered that I didn't know how to return home and didn't know anyone in the Valley, he arranged for me to stay within the protection of his regiment. I became a sort of mascot for them." Mac fell silent, talking about Josiah was once again stirring up dangerous feelings. She thought she'd put him behind her.
"But how did you wind up with Avis?"
Seeing the pensive look on Mac's face, Avis took over the narrative, "That part of the story we told was mostly true. Except that Sarah was abducted from the camp and it wasn't her driver that was killed, it was one of the kidnappers. He'd had a change of heart and tried to help her escape. His two partners killed him for it and thought they had killed her. Deacon found her while he was giving Thomas a ride home and brought her to me. I'm trying to get her home. We thought it would be easier for the community to accept her if they thought she was a foreigner. Since Sarah speaks a number of languages fluently, we decided on Russian."
Corinna rubbed her chin slowly, "When you said 'easier for the community', you meant easier for me, didn't you?" She fell silent. Mac glanced over at Avis, who shrugged slightly. It was anybody's guess how Corinna would react now.
Outside the door, Effie crept quietly away. She hadn't been able to hear everything, but she'd heard enough. It would be worth good money to some folks to learn that the high-falutin' Sasha Dzurick was actually Sarah MacKenzie and nothing more than a common Yankee whore.
Harm's Apartment North of Union Station 0500 Local
Harm sipped his coffee and stared out into the pre-dawn darkness. He hadn't been able to sleep for more than a couple of hours at a stretch. Nightmares would force him awake. He'd finally given up and put some coffee on. He was going to need quite a bit of it today. Goddammit, where was she? What had happened? He raked his hand through his hair. Yesterday had been an exercise in futility. He and Sturgis had gone to Palos and talked to Master Chief Bollings. Well, they had attempted to talk to the man, it had been hard to get a word in edgewise. If the consequences hadn't been so serious, it would amused him to imagine his no-nonsense Marine trying to ride herd on the overly garrulous Master Chief. As it was, Harm was amazed that the old fellow wasn't dead. Mac had shown incredible restraint. At any rate, it had taken them an hour and a half to break away from 'Tribby' and in the end, he'd been no help at all. He couldn't even be sure about the time the pretty Marine Colonel had left.
There was no way to retrace Mac's steps. According to Sturgis, she had talked to the Admiral around 1750 and learned that she had to get back to JAG to replace Major Hardesty on the bench. She'd been on her cellphone. Sturgis had gotten the phone records - it was the last call she'd made. Theoretically, Mac could have already been driving but Harm was fairly sure she would have called before she left. Apparently, her original plans had been to spend the night out this way and drive back in the morning. Knowing she had to preside over a case, Harm figured she wouldn't want to waste any time. She'd probably planned on driving straight to JAG to pick up the case file so she would be prepared in the morning.
He'd pulled up the meteorological reports for Thursday while en route from California. Thunderstorms had rolled through the Blue Ridge Mountains beginning approximately at 1840. There'd been a series of them and they'd gotten nasty, dumping several inches of rain in a short time. Straight-line winds had been clocked at 50 mph and there'd been a multitude of lightning strikes. There'd been trees down, mud slides and flash flooding. Harm didn't think Mac would try to drive through a storm that bad, she wasn't an idiot. More than likely, she'd stopped somewhere to wait it out. It was doubtful, however, that she had stopped immediately. He was willing to bet that Mac probably slowed down and continued on until she was convinced the storm was growing worse. Harm estimated that she might have been driving anywhere from 40 to 90 minutes before she stopped. Allowing for lower speeds on the local roads, that would put her anywhere from 20 to 55 miles from Palos. It was a huge and difficult area to search. What worried him were the breaks between the storms. What if she thought the worst was past and then got caught in the next one?
He and Sturgis had pored over the map, trying to decide what route Mac might have taken. They were both in agreement with the Admiral's assessment that the Interstate was out. Construction and rush hour traffic would have kept her from trying it. The problem was that there were so many ways she could have gone. In the end, he'd chosen to go through Harrisonburg. They had stopped along the way at every sheriff's department and police station. They were all aware that Mac was missing and no one had seen any sign of her.
Frustrated, Harm put down his coffee mug and got up to pace. How could she have vanished so thoroughly? Someone had to have seen her. She must have stopped somewhere for gas and to eat. Mac rarely skipped meals if she could help it. Dammit, military personnel weren't that common in the Valley, surely someone would have noticed and remembered a female Marine officer. Suddenly, he stopped pacing. Oh Christ, what if she'd run into some of those anti-government nutcases? Her uniform would be like a red flag. He turned around and glared at his phone. Why the hell didn't Webb call? When you didn't want him around, you were tripping over the goddamn spook. Harm took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. If domestic lunatics had grabbed Mac, Webb wouldn't know about it anyway. That was the FBI's bailiwick. He checked his watch, it was only 0530. When he got over to the office, he'd give SA Novak a call. Since the Fibbies had gotten some of the glory for breaking up 'Archangel' last year, Harm figured they owed him and Mac a favor or two.
Glancing out the window, he saw that the sky was beginning to lighten. 'Day Four', he thought to himself bleakly. Not for the first time, he was grateful he wasn't cursed with Mac's time sense. Knowing to the minute how long she'd been gone would have been gut-wrenching. If... when he found Mac, he'd apologize for the times he put her through something like this. With a sigh, Harm turned towards his bedroom, he had plenty of time for a run before Sturgis showed up.
He smiled wryly to himself as he changed into shorts and a tank top. His friends and colleagues had banded together to save him from himself. They really expected him to go off the deep end. Sturgis, with Bobbie's blessing, had appointed himself chief watchdog. He'd stuck with him all weekend and then announced he would be giving Harm a ride to work in the morning. Both Bud and Harriet had called him on his cell to commiserate, offer their support and tell him that they'd be there for him at JAG on Monday. All in all, it had been a very unsubtle approach to let him know they weren't going to let him trash his career if they could help it. It was a heartwarming and ultimately futile gesture. His career wasn't worth a tinker's damn if he lost Mac in the process. He would report in and do his job but at the first inkling of a lead to Mac's whereabouts, he'd be out of there, orders be damned.
Shenandoah Valley Northern Virginia 1020 Local
Mac paced slowly between Avis and Avril. This was the first time she'd been up and dressed since her fever broke three days ago. She felt unsteady, like she was learning to walk again. They were going back to Avis' farm. No one was particularly happy. Corinna had been upset by their revelations. She hadn't let it interfere with being a gracious hostess but she hadn't spent any more time with them than necessary. Avril had reassured Avis that this would pass. His mother had been forced to confront an unflattering facet of herself and it was taking time. He'd also agreed with Mac's decision not to let Corinna into the small cadre of people that were aware of the time-travel aspect. Best to let her think that the worst thing they had hidden was that Mac was from the wrong side of the Mason-Dixon line. He was going to tell the same thing to Matt Landers. Both he and Matt had developed a grudging respect for their foes - they shared a warrior's bond. Landers wouldn't be all that shocked. Trusting him with the complete truth was another thing. Avril loved Matt like a brother but he had no illusions about the man's ability to keep his mouth shut. Put him with friends, add a bit of whiskey and Matt would be blathering about everything.
Mac cast a surreptitious glance at Avis. Her lips were set in a thin line and she seemed to be entirely focused on making sure Mac didn't stumble or fall. That wasn't the case, of course. Word had come to town that a column of Yankee cavalry was approaching. Most of Early's troops were in Staunton, too far to arrive in time. It would be up to the local militia and Avril and Matt had volunteered to take command. Avis had been practically beside herself. She had tried once to dissuade both men, fully aware that she would fail to sway them from what they considered their duty. After that, to all outward appearances, she reverted to her calm composure. For Mac, however, the waves of worry and grief were almost palpable. She could only surmise that she'd become more sensitive to Avis' moods. Her sense of foreboding was growing but she couldn't tell if it was something she was experiencing on her own or if she was echoing what Avis was feeling. If Avril had noticed, he wasn't saying anything.
Corinna met them at the front door, nodding a silent greeting, and then following them outside as they walked over to Avis' buggy. Goodbyes were exchanged with Corinna unbending enough to give Avis a brief hug although she had yet to look Mac in the eye. It was uncomfortable and Mac found herself scanning their surroundings. There were only a few townspeople about and Mac was shocked to discover that they seemed to be regarding her with hostility. She glanced back at Corinna, had she betrayed them so quickly?
Then, there was no more time to think about it. Landers was lifting her into the buggy while Avril helped Avis in from the other side. The two men would ride escort to make sure the women arrived safely and then go join up with the militia. Mac heard Avril promise to return in two days. She couldn't help the cold little prickle that ran down her spine.
JAG Headquarters Falls Church, Virginia 0900 Local
AJ stared at the clock and then scowled at his phone. Jen Coates was filling in for Tiner today and was under strict orders to let him know the moment Rabb walked in the door. God help the Commander if he decided to go UA. Unable to sit any longer, the Admiral got up and moved over to stare out his window. He and Meredith had spent the weekend up in the Shenandoah. They'd found a bed and breakfast to spend the night in and gotten a large dose of local history from the proprietors. All of which was interesting and ultimately unproductive in finding his missing Chief of Staff. About the only thing to come out of that trip, other than Meredith's desire to to it again under better circumstances, was to truly grasp the immense difficulties of the search. While the mountains weren't that large, there were hundreds of little roads leading into and out of them. All it would take would be one wrong turn combined with a little bad luck and a person could vanish. Some of the undergrowth in those thousands of little ravines were dense enough to swallow all signs of a car. Unless someone came forward with a lead, it would require a damn miracle to find Mac.
"Admiral?" Jen's voice crackled over his intercom.
Chegwidden whirled away from the window, "Yes, Petty Officer?"
"Sir, Commander Rabb and Commander Turner just walked in," the relief in Coates' voice was evident. There'd been furious speculation in the bullpen about what the Commander would do when he found the Colonel was missing. Opinions were mixed, some thought he would blow off his career and go UA until he found her, others thought the discipline of the service was too deeply ingrained and that he would show up at the appointed time. A third group embraced both ideas, Rabb would show up and then go UA in his search. AJ owed much of his information on the current scuttlebutt to Gunny Walters and Jen Coates.
The speculation about Colonel MacKenzie's fate was starting to touch on the more morbid. It was the beginning of the fourth full day that she'd been missing. Half of the discussions now centered around how long an injured person might survive without medical care. AJ knew it wasn't meant to be callous. As officers went, Mac was rather popular with the staff. He figured it was their way of reassuring themselves. The Colonel was a tough-as-nails Marine, she could survive quite a lot. Hell, she already had. Stories were being re-circulated about the myriad of should-have-been-fatal scrapes that Rabb and MacKenzie had made it through.
The other half of the discussions dealt with revenge and the number of people who would gladly see the Colonel dead. Theories and suspects were bandied about, shot down and resurrected in new combinations. It was beginning to resemble a giant game of Clue. It didn't make it any easier for her friends, Bud was a case in point. This morning, the normally affable Lieutenant had jumped on a couple of yeomen after overhearing their conversation. AJ had pulled Roberts into his office to vent and then cool off. There he had found out that Bud had been engaged in his own relentless search. His had been via the Internet as he tracked down the whereabouts of anyone who might have had a grudge against the Colonel. He didn't look like he'd had a good night's sleep in days. If they weren't so damnably short-handed, Chegwidden would have sent him home right then.
AJ glared at the intercom, "Coates? Tell Rabb to report to my office in five." Neither one of them was going to enjoy what he was about to do but there was no point in putting it off.