Title : Where The Sea Meets The Sky
Author : Jaggie 107
Disclaimer : JAG characters belong to DPB, CBS and Paramount. 'Sue Thomas, F.B.Eye' belongs to PAX TV - and I hope all parties will allow me to have fun for a little while, and replace them all when I'm done. Thank you. (I forgot to include a disclaimer for NCIS last chapter, so here it is now...I'll leave it in for the rest of the story; makes life easier when I need to 'borrow' Gibbs and his team!)
Rating : G to PG-13
Thanks go to cbw, jtbwriter, beegirl, katydid13, ninjaturtle, capriceann, starryeyes10, kirsten, soonerfan, another tracy, tomcat-all, lori4, carol, eliv.thade, alicia5, fragmentpieces, kesh, claysmvl, chicmns, skyefire, tammy-jet, abigale, kjflygirl87 and anna7 for their reviews. As before, any reviewers I miss between posts will be added to the list for the next chapter!
Replies to previous chapter reviews :
jtbwriter I'm getting to like Gibbs more and more! Jack and Sue are doing fine; Sue's coming into her own as an agent, and Jack's letting her, while still keeping an eye on her. He is, after all, her mentor. Harm, Mac and Mattie - well, I have plans for them! Thanks as always.
abigale Great to hear from you again and thanks for the support. More of Harm, Mac and Mattie to follow.
kjflygirl87 Great to have you back! Sorry you haven't been able to review, but glad you've been following the story.
anna7 I got your review; thank you! Hope you enjoy the rest of the story as it unfolds.
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JAG OFFICE
USS SEA HAWK
SOMEWHERE IN THE INDIAN OCEAN
WEDNESDAY NIGHT
Harm, Sturgis and Captain Johnson all sat in the JAG office as Mac spoke to Sue. They had already received the notification from NCIS about their brig resident having dual nationality, and Mac just wanted to confirm with Sue her thoughts on the meeting with Gibbs. The three men waited while Mac concluded the conversation, and then she turned to face them.
"Sue says Gibbs was a little curious as to why she wanted details on a military case, but when it came down to finding out information, she felt he was way ahead of the game. He gave her the information he gave us, told her he'd already warned the Sea Hawk about possible danger, but Sue still feels he knows more."
"Give him the benefit of the doubt and presume he's being cautious until he knows more himself," Harm advised, and Mac nodded. Captain Johnson got to his feet.
"Do you think the man knows anything about the attacks that have been threatened?"
"Maybe, sir. There's no point in trying to get it out of him; he's gone this long without speaking about anything." Mac answered, but she seemed distracted.
"There's a 'but' there, Colonel. You think differently?" Johnson asked.
"He just seems so...I think 'resigned' is the word, sir. It's as though he's done the crime, now he just wants to get the trial over and do his time."
"Not the profile of a regular terrorist, eh?"
"No, sir, it isn't."
"Do you have a theory?"
"We know he reported on board the Sea Hawk as ordered, spent time on board doing his duty, and got shore leave, as per usual. It was the fact that he didn't report back from shore leave that raised the alarm, right? He has a local family, we have established, and he could have gone to ground and never been found out. So, why did he go to a western bar, and give himself up so easily? Even the military police officer reported he more or less said 'hi, here I am'," Mac paused.
"Keep going," Harm spoke up, following Mac's train of ideas.
"What if he was approached to do something, maybe relating to the proposed attacks, maybe not...but he refused. The only way out of the clutches of these people, and to guarantee his safety, would be to hide out somewhere he knew well. Where better than the brig?"
"So we're to let him go, pat him on the back, and say 'it's okay, son, we know you didn't mean it?'. I don't think so, Colonel." Johnson shook his head, but Mac carried on.
"He did wrong, sir, by going UA, and he knows that. He could have tried to explain his circumstances, but he didn't, and that's what he's paying for now. If my theory is correct and he was approached, it was his own family that put him in that situation, and perhaps it is that thought that made him give himself up. Perhaps he feels betrayed by them, or perhaps they were being held at ransom until he joined the terrorists..." Mac paused again, and suddenly clicked her fingers. "That could be it! If his family have been held to ransom, the payoff being his using his western connections to help the terrorists plans, the only way he could get out of it would be to make it look as though he had been caught out and was being held for military punishment. If he had just turned tail and run, the terrorists would have hunted him down, and perhaps killed his family too, just for the hell of it. With him imprisoned like this, they have no way of getting to him, but may just believe that it wasn't his doing that he was captured."
"It's a long shot, Colonel," Johnson shook his head again, but then smiled slightly. "I hope you can find something to back it up, or that the man will speak up for himself; I prefer to go with this theory, though, than believe the man is actually involved in a terrorist threat."
"Don't we all, sir?" Mac agreed, and glanced at both Harm and Sturgis, before standing to salute as Johnson left the room. Just before he closed the hatch, he leaned back in. All three senior officers stood to attention again.
"At ease. Just a reminder, would you have Mattie come to the bridge first thing tomorrow morning?"
"Aye, sir." Harm and Mac confirmed, and Sturgis grinned to himself. When the captain had left, all three let out loud sighs. Sturgis looked admiringly at Mac, and she raised an eyebrow in silent question.
"Oh, just thinking how much I've missed your inquisitive mind, Mac. The last thing I would have been thinking of would be that the man really did just get caught in the middle of his different heritages - his western and mid-eastern beliefs conflicting. What are you going to do now?"
"We can talk to him in the morning. Tell him that we know about his Bahraini family, and see what that gets us." Mac suggested, looking between Harm and Sturgis, waiting for their response. Harm spoke up first.
"We could make him a deal, and leave him to stew on it while we're onshore. You and I will be back Saturday; that's enough time for him to have reached a decision. I'm guessing he'd be ready to talk by then."
"Well, guys, as I'm the one leaving the Sea Hawk I leave this matter in your hands. Let me know what happens, Mac, and I'll do what I can stateside." Sturgis spoke to the pair of them.
"Okay. Sounds good, Sturgis. Right, can we call it a night now? I'm bushed, and we're going to be busy tomorrow before we leave for Bahrain." Mac stifled a yawn behind her hand, and then laughed softly. "See?"
Sturgis opened the hatch to the JAG office and stepped over the knee-knocker. "I'll see you back at the VOQ, Harm. I'm going to grab a drink and then hit the sack."
"Okay, buddy." Harm acknowledged Sturgis, who waved at Mac and she nodded in response.
"G'night, Sturgis."
Once Sturgis had gone, his footfalls fading on the decking as he walked away, Mac and Harm stood and looked at each other.
"We should go..." Mac murmured, and Harm nodded, his eyes fixed on Mac's face.
"We'll be together tomorrow. Varese has booked a suite at the hotel, two rooms, for us and Mattie." Harm repeated what Sturgis had told him earlier in the day, confirming plans for their shore leave.
"I know," Mac's voice dropped, and she added "...but I need to be with you now."
Harm nodded, in full agreement with her. Suddenly he grinned, and opened the hatch.
"Where are we going?" Mac questioned, following him as he left the cabin.
"I just remembered a place, from a case a while back."
"I don't remember..." Mac began, and at the look Harm gave her, she faltered. "It wasn't with me, was it?"
"Kate Pike," Harm confirmed, and then touched Mac's cheek as her head dropped. "Hey, it wasn't my hiding place. Do you remember the pilot who went overboard? Tom Boone's RIO."
Mac nodded, not trusting her voice just then. Harm caught her hitch, but he chose to ignore it for the time being, and continued speaking. "Angela was married, to one of the other pilot/RIO's on board, and he told me where they'd meet up on board. One of their favorites was the COD at night. It's tied down on deck, left unattended until the morning schedule. Should give us a few hours."
"You're serious!" Mac squeaked, and Harm laughed, nodding.
"You game?" he asked, his eyes darkening as he looked at her, and Mac shivered. It was 'that' look, and she was turning to mush - again!
"Lead on, squid," she retorted, needing to be sat down before her legs gave way.
FLIGHT DECK
USS SEA HAWK
SOMEWHERE IN THE INDIAN OCEAN
WEDNESDAY NIGHT
Harm had made quick work of the stairs between the deck they were on, and the flight deck. Mac kept up, willing her legs to keep going as she followed him. If he didn't get them to the COD soon she was going to give up in exhaustion, before they'd even begun their nocturnal adventure! Despite his knowledge of the carrier and ability to find short cuts to the flight deck, this was taking far too long, or so Mac thought. Eventually they walked onto the flight deck, and Harm pulled her behind a stack of pallets, checking out the location of the COD, and making out the LSO platform, and the personnel milling around the working deck. Grabbing hold of Mac's hand, Harm pointed out the COD, and indicated that he would go first, and she should follow at his signal. Mac nodded in understanding, and watched as Harm set off across the deck, timing his run as the first of two jets in the night sorties made to depart. As the deck crew were busy and distracted, Harm reached the COD with no-one being aware of his movement. Checking the movement of the second jet, Harm raised his hand to Mac and counted down his fingers, 3-2-1. At the last digit, she ran across the deck, reaching Harm and the underbelly of the COD as the second jet took off, and the ground crew readied for the second flight.
"Wow!" Mac squealed, fighting to be heard above the noise on the deck. "This is amazing! I've never been this close to the take-offs before!" Harm grinned, dropped a quick kiss on her upturned mouth, and then released the catch to the steps that led to the forward cabin of the COD. Pushing Mac in ahead of him, he followed her up the steps, and drew them up behind him, securing the catch inside.
In the darkness of the cabin Mac waited while Harm re-fastened the lock, and then as her eyes grew accustomed to the limited light, she saw the grin on Harm's face.
"So, first time in a COD, Mac?"
"For what we have planned, mister, you bet!" Mac's husky laugh brought Harm closer and he dropped another soft kiss on her lips, before beginning to remove her jacket. Mac helped him, and then began working on the buttons of his uniform shirt, pushing the collar open so she could nuzzle into the nook between his neck and his shoulder as he removed his own jacket, making a softer 'mattress' on the floor of the cabin with their outer clothing.
"You know," Mac mused, as Harm settled back, pulling her above him. "I'm not going to be able to get on this thing tomorrow without a huge grin on my face, knowing what we did the night before."
"And what 'did' we do the night before, marine?" Harm asked, smiling up at her in the dark, but aware that she knew how ready he was for this encounter. How ready they both were, for each other.
"Oh, this..." Mac murmured, leaning in to kiss Harm, and as she pulled back he could see her eyes had darkened also, and a predatory smile settled on her lips. "And this..."
Any sounds coming from the COD were buried in the noise of the activity on the outside deck, and none of the LSO platform personnel or the ground crew were aware of the 'activity' on the COD!
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To be continued
Author : Jaggie 107
Disclaimer : JAG characters belong to DPB, CBS and Paramount. 'Sue Thomas, F.B.Eye' belongs to PAX TV - and I hope all parties will allow me to have fun for a little while, and replace them all when I'm done. Thank you. (I forgot to include a disclaimer for NCIS last chapter, so here it is now...I'll leave it in for the rest of the story; makes life easier when I need to 'borrow' Gibbs and his team!)
Rating : G to PG-13
Thanks go to cbw, jtbwriter, beegirl, katydid13, ninjaturtle, capriceann, starryeyes10, kirsten, soonerfan, another tracy, tomcat-all, lori4, carol, eliv.thade, alicia5, fragmentpieces, kesh, claysmvl, chicmns, skyefire, tammy-jet, abigale, kjflygirl87 and anna7 for their reviews. As before, any reviewers I miss between posts will be added to the list for the next chapter!
Replies to previous chapter reviews :
jtbwriter I'm getting to like Gibbs more and more! Jack and Sue are doing fine; Sue's coming into her own as an agent, and Jack's letting her, while still keeping an eye on her. He is, after all, her mentor. Harm, Mac and Mattie - well, I have plans for them! Thanks as always.
abigale Great to hear from you again and thanks for the support. More of Harm, Mac and Mattie to follow.
kjflygirl87 Great to have you back! Sorry you haven't been able to review, but glad you've been following the story.
anna7 I got your review; thank you! Hope you enjoy the rest of the story as it unfolds.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
JAG OFFICE
USS SEA HAWK
SOMEWHERE IN THE INDIAN OCEAN
WEDNESDAY NIGHT
Harm, Sturgis and Captain Johnson all sat in the JAG office as Mac spoke to Sue. They had already received the notification from NCIS about their brig resident having dual nationality, and Mac just wanted to confirm with Sue her thoughts on the meeting with Gibbs. The three men waited while Mac concluded the conversation, and then she turned to face them.
"Sue says Gibbs was a little curious as to why she wanted details on a military case, but when it came down to finding out information, she felt he was way ahead of the game. He gave her the information he gave us, told her he'd already warned the Sea Hawk about possible danger, but Sue still feels he knows more."
"Give him the benefit of the doubt and presume he's being cautious until he knows more himself," Harm advised, and Mac nodded. Captain Johnson got to his feet.
"Do you think the man knows anything about the attacks that have been threatened?"
"Maybe, sir. There's no point in trying to get it out of him; he's gone this long without speaking about anything." Mac answered, but she seemed distracted.
"There's a 'but' there, Colonel. You think differently?" Johnson asked.
"He just seems so...I think 'resigned' is the word, sir. It's as though he's done the crime, now he just wants to get the trial over and do his time."
"Not the profile of a regular terrorist, eh?"
"No, sir, it isn't."
"Do you have a theory?"
"We know he reported on board the Sea Hawk as ordered, spent time on board doing his duty, and got shore leave, as per usual. It was the fact that he didn't report back from shore leave that raised the alarm, right? He has a local family, we have established, and he could have gone to ground and never been found out. So, why did he go to a western bar, and give himself up so easily? Even the military police officer reported he more or less said 'hi, here I am'," Mac paused.
"Keep going," Harm spoke up, following Mac's train of ideas.
"What if he was approached to do something, maybe relating to the proposed attacks, maybe not...but he refused. The only way out of the clutches of these people, and to guarantee his safety, would be to hide out somewhere he knew well. Where better than the brig?"
"So we're to let him go, pat him on the back, and say 'it's okay, son, we know you didn't mean it?'. I don't think so, Colonel." Johnson shook his head, but Mac carried on.
"He did wrong, sir, by going UA, and he knows that. He could have tried to explain his circumstances, but he didn't, and that's what he's paying for now. If my theory is correct and he was approached, it was his own family that put him in that situation, and perhaps it is that thought that made him give himself up. Perhaps he feels betrayed by them, or perhaps they were being held at ransom until he joined the terrorists..." Mac paused again, and suddenly clicked her fingers. "That could be it! If his family have been held to ransom, the payoff being his using his western connections to help the terrorists plans, the only way he could get out of it would be to make it look as though he had been caught out and was being held for military punishment. If he had just turned tail and run, the terrorists would have hunted him down, and perhaps killed his family too, just for the hell of it. With him imprisoned like this, they have no way of getting to him, but may just believe that it wasn't his doing that he was captured."
"It's a long shot, Colonel," Johnson shook his head again, but then smiled slightly. "I hope you can find something to back it up, or that the man will speak up for himself; I prefer to go with this theory, though, than believe the man is actually involved in a terrorist threat."
"Don't we all, sir?" Mac agreed, and glanced at both Harm and Sturgis, before standing to salute as Johnson left the room. Just before he closed the hatch, he leaned back in. All three senior officers stood to attention again.
"At ease. Just a reminder, would you have Mattie come to the bridge first thing tomorrow morning?"
"Aye, sir." Harm and Mac confirmed, and Sturgis grinned to himself. When the captain had left, all three let out loud sighs. Sturgis looked admiringly at Mac, and she raised an eyebrow in silent question.
"Oh, just thinking how much I've missed your inquisitive mind, Mac. The last thing I would have been thinking of would be that the man really did just get caught in the middle of his different heritages - his western and mid-eastern beliefs conflicting. What are you going to do now?"
"We can talk to him in the morning. Tell him that we know about his Bahraini family, and see what that gets us." Mac suggested, looking between Harm and Sturgis, waiting for their response. Harm spoke up first.
"We could make him a deal, and leave him to stew on it while we're onshore. You and I will be back Saturday; that's enough time for him to have reached a decision. I'm guessing he'd be ready to talk by then."
"Well, guys, as I'm the one leaving the Sea Hawk I leave this matter in your hands. Let me know what happens, Mac, and I'll do what I can stateside." Sturgis spoke to the pair of them.
"Okay. Sounds good, Sturgis. Right, can we call it a night now? I'm bushed, and we're going to be busy tomorrow before we leave for Bahrain." Mac stifled a yawn behind her hand, and then laughed softly. "See?"
Sturgis opened the hatch to the JAG office and stepped over the knee-knocker. "I'll see you back at the VOQ, Harm. I'm going to grab a drink and then hit the sack."
"Okay, buddy." Harm acknowledged Sturgis, who waved at Mac and she nodded in response.
"G'night, Sturgis."
Once Sturgis had gone, his footfalls fading on the decking as he walked away, Mac and Harm stood and looked at each other.
"We should go..." Mac murmured, and Harm nodded, his eyes fixed on Mac's face.
"We'll be together tomorrow. Varese has booked a suite at the hotel, two rooms, for us and Mattie." Harm repeated what Sturgis had told him earlier in the day, confirming plans for their shore leave.
"I know," Mac's voice dropped, and she added "...but I need to be with you now."
Harm nodded, in full agreement with her. Suddenly he grinned, and opened the hatch.
"Where are we going?" Mac questioned, following him as he left the cabin.
"I just remembered a place, from a case a while back."
"I don't remember..." Mac began, and at the look Harm gave her, she faltered. "It wasn't with me, was it?"
"Kate Pike," Harm confirmed, and then touched Mac's cheek as her head dropped. "Hey, it wasn't my hiding place. Do you remember the pilot who went overboard? Tom Boone's RIO."
Mac nodded, not trusting her voice just then. Harm caught her hitch, but he chose to ignore it for the time being, and continued speaking. "Angela was married, to one of the other pilot/RIO's on board, and he told me where they'd meet up on board. One of their favorites was the COD at night. It's tied down on deck, left unattended until the morning schedule. Should give us a few hours."
"You're serious!" Mac squeaked, and Harm laughed, nodding.
"You game?" he asked, his eyes darkening as he looked at her, and Mac shivered. It was 'that' look, and she was turning to mush - again!
"Lead on, squid," she retorted, needing to be sat down before her legs gave way.
FLIGHT DECK
USS SEA HAWK
SOMEWHERE IN THE INDIAN OCEAN
WEDNESDAY NIGHT
Harm had made quick work of the stairs between the deck they were on, and the flight deck. Mac kept up, willing her legs to keep going as she followed him. If he didn't get them to the COD soon she was going to give up in exhaustion, before they'd even begun their nocturnal adventure! Despite his knowledge of the carrier and ability to find short cuts to the flight deck, this was taking far too long, or so Mac thought. Eventually they walked onto the flight deck, and Harm pulled her behind a stack of pallets, checking out the location of the COD, and making out the LSO platform, and the personnel milling around the working deck. Grabbing hold of Mac's hand, Harm pointed out the COD, and indicated that he would go first, and she should follow at his signal. Mac nodded in understanding, and watched as Harm set off across the deck, timing his run as the first of two jets in the night sorties made to depart. As the deck crew were busy and distracted, Harm reached the COD with no-one being aware of his movement. Checking the movement of the second jet, Harm raised his hand to Mac and counted down his fingers, 3-2-1. At the last digit, she ran across the deck, reaching Harm and the underbelly of the COD as the second jet took off, and the ground crew readied for the second flight.
"Wow!" Mac squealed, fighting to be heard above the noise on the deck. "This is amazing! I've never been this close to the take-offs before!" Harm grinned, dropped a quick kiss on her upturned mouth, and then released the catch to the steps that led to the forward cabin of the COD. Pushing Mac in ahead of him, he followed her up the steps, and drew them up behind him, securing the catch inside.
In the darkness of the cabin Mac waited while Harm re-fastened the lock, and then as her eyes grew accustomed to the limited light, she saw the grin on Harm's face.
"So, first time in a COD, Mac?"
"For what we have planned, mister, you bet!" Mac's husky laugh brought Harm closer and he dropped another soft kiss on her lips, before beginning to remove her jacket. Mac helped him, and then began working on the buttons of his uniform shirt, pushing the collar open so she could nuzzle into the nook between his neck and his shoulder as he removed his own jacket, making a softer 'mattress' on the floor of the cabin with their outer clothing.
"You know," Mac mused, as Harm settled back, pulling her above him. "I'm not going to be able to get on this thing tomorrow without a huge grin on my face, knowing what we did the night before."
"And what 'did' we do the night before, marine?" Harm asked, smiling up at her in the dark, but aware that she knew how ready he was for this encounter. How ready they both were, for each other.
"Oh, this..." Mac murmured, leaning in to kiss Harm, and as she pulled back he could see her eyes had darkened also, and a predatory smile settled on her lips. "And this..."
Any sounds coming from the COD were buried in the noise of the activity on the outside deck, and none of the LSO platform personnel or the ground crew were aware of the 'activity' on the COD!
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To be continued