"Okay dinners ready." Harm said.
"And Abi's asleep." Faith added softly looking at the little girl in her arms.
"I'll put her to bed." Harm took her gently from Faith. "Go ahead and start I'll just be a minute."
"Night sweetheart." Mac dropped a kiss on Abi's forehead. Harm carried her towards the stairs. "Dining room is this way." She led the way. "Take a seat." She went and sat down next to her usual place at the table.
"Vegetable lasagne." Faith said sitting down.
"Harm's practically a vegetarian." Mac told Brett.
"But the man knows how to cook." Faith added.
"Yep. He's a lot better at it than I am. He says he had to learn to survive, but I think it has more to do with his grandmother."
"I'll have to steal the recipe." Faith said.
"You're going to cook?" Brett questioned.
"I can cook." Faith stated as a matter of fact.
"Faith, you burnt toast." Brett said which cause Mac to laugh.
"That was once and I was on the phone to you trying to argue a plea bargain at the time."
"Your neighbour called the fire brigade." Brett reminded her.
"She was 78 and she called the cops when a squirrel sat on her balcony."
"She was a nice old lady, just a little lonely." Brett insisted.
"That's because she used to bake you cookies and called you pumpkin."
"Still didn't mean she wasn't a nice lady." Brett said.
Mac smiled at the interaction.
"So what did I miss?" Harm asked.
"Faith was just asking for the recipe for the lasagne." Mac replied as Harm plugged in the baby monitor.
"It's an old family recipe I'm not sure I should share it." Harm took his seat next to Mac.
"What he means is Grams clipped it from a magazine years ago." Mac corrected. "And he doesn't have the recipe written down it's in his head."
"And you shouldn't give away the family secrets."
#
"Well that was great." Faith said when they finished desert.
"Why don't you and Mac going into the living room Brett can help me carry the dishes into the kitchen."
"That's one order I'm not going to argue with." Faith said.
"Me either." Mac added.
"So you wanted to talk to me about Krennick." Harm said as he rinsed the dishes under the tap before loading them into the dishwasher.
"Yes sir."
"Here's what you need to know. We worked together eight / nine years ago. She made very unsubtle passes at me, she'd turn up at my apartment to take a shower, run her finger down my arm, suggested we spend the weekend together. Would I have ever taken her up on her offer? Not a chance in hell, I wouldn't have slept with a superior officer. Krennick uses sex as a weapon of power to control the male subordinates under her. Did I think she sexual-harassed me? Yes. Would I have had her charged then? No. If she did it now, damn right I would."
"Sir, with all due respect until your promotion on Saturday didn't Colonel Mackenzie out rank you?"
"Apart from a couple months, most of which I was on the Patrick Henry a few years ago, we were always the same rank equivalent. When we got married she was still a Lieutenant Colonel, she went into to labour with Abi before her promotion ceremony could start, so it got moved up an hour so she and Jen could get promoted before Abi was born." Harm paused. "Back when I served with Krennick, I'd just got my gold wings back and they were letting me fly again after five years in daylight after I'd been misdiagnosed with night blindness after a ramp strike. I was cocky and arrogant, which Mac would probably still tell you I am, and good at my job. I was basically JAG's golden boy. Krennick didn't like it. Back then I dealt with it."
"And now?" Brett prompted.
"Now I have a wife, a daughter and two more kids on the way, mortgage payments, car payments, day care costs. I have more responsibilities and I like my life. Before you ask I didn't have any knowledge about the restraining order prior to the time Krennick received it and do I think she should be charged with conduct unbecoming. If the complaints were filed with just cause and then rescinded because of pressure from whomever then yes. Krennick knows the limits of what is considered good conduct and she should stick to them."
"I'm going to need to talk to Lieutenant Commander Austin." Brett said.
"She said she was going out of town for a couple of days when I spoke to her yesterday. But I'll leave her a message that you want to talk to her and to have her call you as soon as she gets back."
"Thank you sir."
"By the way how did my name come up? Or Meg's for that matter? I know Faith didn't include either in the file she gave the Admiral to give you."
"Captain Krennick mentioned you both. She's blaming Colonel Mackenzie for this."
"She brought this on herself. But thanks for the heads up, I'll have them step up the Marine's presence around the courts and Mac's office." Harm said.
"You think the Captain would try and hurt her?"
"She's your client but you only met her today. Krennick is capable of many many things, but I don't take chances where my family is concerned. So was there anything else you wanted to know."
"No. If I called you as a witness you'd hinder her case more than help it. But I have to be prepared if Faith calls you."
"She won't, she already made that quite clear. We should go and see what they are up to; leaving two Marines in my living room tends not to be a good thing."
TBC
"And Abi's asleep." Faith added softly looking at the little girl in her arms.
"I'll put her to bed." Harm took her gently from Faith. "Go ahead and start I'll just be a minute."
"Night sweetheart." Mac dropped a kiss on Abi's forehead. Harm carried her towards the stairs. "Dining room is this way." She led the way. "Take a seat." She went and sat down next to her usual place at the table.
"Vegetable lasagne." Faith said sitting down.
"Harm's practically a vegetarian." Mac told Brett.
"But the man knows how to cook." Faith added.
"Yep. He's a lot better at it than I am. He says he had to learn to survive, but I think it has more to do with his grandmother."
"I'll have to steal the recipe." Faith said.
"You're going to cook?" Brett questioned.
"I can cook." Faith stated as a matter of fact.
"Faith, you burnt toast." Brett said which cause Mac to laugh.
"That was once and I was on the phone to you trying to argue a plea bargain at the time."
"Your neighbour called the fire brigade." Brett reminded her.
"She was 78 and she called the cops when a squirrel sat on her balcony."
"She was a nice old lady, just a little lonely." Brett insisted.
"That's because she used to bake you cookies and called you pumpkin."
"Still didn't mean she wasn't a nice lady." Brett said.
Mac smiled at the interaction.
"So what did I miss?" Harm asked.
"Faith was just asking for the recipe for the lasagne." Mac replied as Harm plugged in the baby monitor.
"It's an old family recipe I'm not sure I should share it." Harm took his seat next to Mac.
"What he means is Grams clipped it from a magazine years ago." Mac corrected. "And he doesn't have the recipe written down it's in his head."
"And you shouldn't give away the family secrets."
#
"Well that was great." Faith said when they finished desert.
"Why don't you and Mac going into the living room Brett can help me carry the dishes into the kitchen."
"That's one order I'm not going to argue with." Faith said.
"Me either." Mac added.
"So you wanted to talk to me about Krennick." Harm said as he rinsed the dishes under the tap before loading them into the dishwasher.
"Yes sir."
"Here's what you need to know. We worked together eight / nine years ago. She made very unsubtle passes at me, she'd turn up at my apartment to take a shower, run her finger down my arm, suggested we spend the weekend together. Would I have ever taken her up on her offer? Not a chance in hell, I wouldn't have slept with a superior officer. Krennick uses sex as a weapon of power to control the male subordinates under her. Did I think she sexual-harassed me? Yes. Would I have had her charged then? No. If she did it now, damn right I would."
"Sir, with all due respect until your promotion on Saturday didn't Colonel Mackenzie out rank you?"
"Apart from a couple months, most of which I was on the Patrick Henry a few years ago, we were always the same rank equivalent. When we got married she was still a Lieutenant Colonel, she went into to labour with Abi before her promotion ceremony could start, so it got moved up an hour so she and Jen could get promoted before Abi was born." Harm paused. "Back when I served with Krennick, I'd just got my gold wings back and they were letting me fly again after five years in daylight after I'd been misdiagnosed with night blindness after a ramp strike. I was cocky and arrogant, which Mac would probably still tell you I am, and good at my job. I was basically JAG's golden boy. Krennick didn't like it. Back then I dealt with it."
"And now?" Brett prompted.
"Now I have a wife, a daughter and two more kids on the way, mortgage payments, car payments, day care costs. I have more responsibilities and I like my life. Before you ask I didn't have any knowledge about the restraining order prior to the time Krennick received it and do I think she should be charged with conduct unbecoming. If the complaints were filed with just cause and then rescinded because of pressure from whomever then yes. Krennick knows the limits of what is considered good conduct and she should stick to them."
"I'm going to need to talk to Lieutenant Commander Austin." Brett said.
"She said she was going out of town for a couple of days when I spoke to her yesterday. But I'll leave her a message that you want to talk to her and to have her call you as soon as she gets back."
"Thank you sir."
"By the way how did my name come up? Or Meg's for that matter? I know Faith didn't include either in the file she gave the Admiral to give you."
"Captain Krennick mentioned you both. She's blaming Colonel Mackenzie for this."
"She brought this on herself. But thanks for the heads up, I'll have them step up the Marine's presence around the courts and Mac's office." Harm said.
"You think the Captain would try and hurt her?"
"She's your client but you only met her today. Krennick is capable of many many things, but I don't take chances where my family is concerned. So was there anything else you wanted to know."
"No. If I called you as a witness you'd hinder her case more than help it. But I have to be prepared if Faith calls you."
"She won't, she already made that quite clear. We should go and see what they are up to; leaving two Marines in my living room tends not to be a good thing."
TBC
