A/N: This is the betaed and corrected edition of Chapter 19. Enjoy.
A Man Called Ghost
Chapter 19
Harm angrily jabbed his key into the ignition and started his Corvette. Gunning the engine a little, he peeled out of the parking lot not even seeing Mac watch him storm off once more. As he drove away from the restaurant he didn't realize how tightly he was gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles started to ache. Consciously relaxing his grip a little he began swearing to himself.
Who the hell did they think they were? What the hell gave them the right? He just knew both Beth and Mac were involved; she didn't just 'happen' to know which restaurant Beth was taking him to. Damn them. Why the hell couldn't they leave him alone?
Tugging the wheel to the right, Harm flew around a corner and pushed the accelerator down a bit more to open the engine up. He wasn't even paying attention to his speed as he pounded on the steering wheel and cursed.
Why? Why wouldn't she just accept that he let her go? Why couldn't she move on? She said he wouldn't let her, but he was trying. God, it hurt, but he was trying. He had tried to forget her, when he was doing his training, when he was with the SEALs and SAS, but he couldn't. Still, as time had gone on his remembering became less painful; never gone, always there, but it didn't tear at his heart as much. Then he'd seen her again, at the restaurant with Webb, in Iraq on the op, at the Roberts house for AJ's party. Every time he saw her it hurt a little more. Every time he saw her those feelings grew.
Now she was seeking him out, rubbing in that pain.
"FUCK!" Harm screamed as he swerved to get around another car. At least the 'vette handled well.
Feeling frustrated he tromped down on the brake as he hit a red light. When the light changed to green, Harm floored the car and flew through the gears as he rocketed to a speed he was comfortable with. God he needed a drink.
Harm had been driving for awhile and hadn't even noticed that he wasn't anywhere near his apartment. Apparently his mind didn't want him to go home yet. Fine, he still needed to blow off the steam that he'd built up after being ambushed by Mac.
For an hour Harm drove around; at times pushing his car to its limits, other times crawling along as he drove lost in thought. A part of him that he thought had died was speaking to him, telling him to go to her, telling him how much he needed to be with her. Furious with himself, Harm tried to force that voice back down where he'd buried it a year before.
Mac had been sitting outside Harm's apartment for almost an hour; 47 minutes and 12 seconds to be exact. She'd figured he'd either head home or to the Wall after peeling out of the parking lot like that. She'd gone to the Wall first and didn't find him there, then she came to his apartment. Still no sign of Harm though, and she was starting to get anxious. She'd thought about leaving on and off the whole time she was here. Finally she opened her car door and steeled herself. Quickly she made her way across the street and up to Harm's apartment. After knocking and waiting for five minutes she pulled out her "emergency" key and carefully opened his door. Carefully, she moved into his apartment and called out "Harm?" She stood just inside the door waiting for an answer for two minutes. Slowly, comma she stepped further into the apartment and closed the door. Sitting down on the couch she decided to wait for him to come home. After awhile she laid down to do her waiting, it wasn't long before she fell asleep.
Mac wasn't sure how long she'd been laying there when the ringing of her cell phone interrupted her sleep. Fumbling, she found her purse on the floor and pulled out her phone. "MacKenzie." she answered groggily.
"I'm sorry, is this Sarah MacKenzie?"
"Yes it is. Who is this?" Mac asked in confusion. She didn't recognize the voice and she didn't give her cell phone number out to many people.
"This is George Washington Hospital, we have a patient in emergency who has listed you as their next of kin..."
Mac's breath caught at the words, she was wide awake now. "Harm? Is he alright?" she asked in a hurry.
"I'm sorry I don't have any information...." The calm voice began.
"I'm on my way there!" Mac said hastily and then hung up on the doctor. As she rushed out of Harm's apartment she thought for a moment about phoning the Admiral but decided to hold off for now. She'd see how bad it was before she phoned anyone else. The drive to the hospital was a blur as she pushed traffic laws to the very breaking point. Sliding into a parking spot she flew from her car into the emergency room waiting area.
Running up to the nurse's station Mac looked at the elderly lady behind the desk. "I'm looking for a Harmon Rabb."
"One moment please...ah yes. He's in exam room 3." the elderly nurse said in a neutral tone of voice. "Doctor Warren is with him right now."
Mac quickly stepped away from the station and started looking for exam room 3 wherever that was. As she looked around in confusion a short chubby man stepped up to her. "Ms. MacKenzie?"
"Yes?"
"I'm Doctor Warren. Elise told me someone was looking for Mr. Rabb. Right this way please." the doctor said politely and then led Mac towards a room down the hall. Outside the room he stopped and then put a gentle hand on Mac's arm. "Ms. MacKenzie, before we go in I feel I should warn you Mr. Rabb was in a car accident, and he looks a lot worse than he really is. The most significant injury he sustained was a blow to his head which appears to have caused a significant concussion. Other than that it is mostly bumps and bruises, though he does have some cracked ribs as well. You may notice he will have difficulty breathing until those ribs heal if he's not careful."
Mac took a deep breath at the doctor's diagnosis. The concussion was the most serious thing; especially considering he'd had so many in his life. "A concussion?"
"Yes. Now he's still unconscious so maybe you can answer some questions for me before we go in?"
"I want to see him first, and then I'll answer your questions." Mac said with steel in her voice.
"Really, it is in Mr. Rabb's best interest to have the questions answered as soon as possible." the doctor said without missing a beat. Whoever this woman was, the doctor had dealt with worse in the GW emergency room.
"Damn it doctor, if you don't get out of my way you'll be visiting your own emergency room!" Mac thundered in her best AJ Chegwidden impersonation. "I'll answer all your questions after I see him."
Doctor Warren unconsciously took a step back from this slender lady in front of him. Perhaps he hadn't dealt with worse before. "Very well, but I will not be held accountable..."
"I'm not going to sue you doctor, and I waive the right to do so. Just let me in to see him."
Doctor Warren reached out and slowly opened the door, standing aside to let Mac enter the room. Cautiously she stepped inside and stopped with a small cry. She brought her hand to her mouth at the sight of Harm laying in the hospital bed all battered and bruised with a bandage wrapped around his head. With hurried steps she crossed the distance to his bedside carefully putting her hand to his forehead to brush the hair from his eyes. For the first time she really noticed how shaggy it was, or maybe it was just the way it stuck up from under the bandages. "Oh Harm." she said softly. "This is becoming too much of a habit with you."
After a few minutes of watching his chest rise and fall in time to the beeping of the machines surrounding him, Mac turned back to the doctor. "What are your questions doctor?"
"Perhaps we should step outside..."
"No, ask them here." Mac said steadily.
"Very well." the doctor said with a sigh. "During my examination I noticed that his back is covered in fresh scars, as well as a number of old scars. Do you know the nature of these wounds?"
"It was..." Mac started only to be interrupted.
"A workplace injury." a familiar voice said as Clayton Webb strode into the room.
"And you are?" the doctor asked with a raised eyebrow.
"A representative of his employer." Webb said with a smirk.
"And the scars on his leg?"
"The result of reconstructive surgery brought about by the same injury." Webb answered again.
"Has Mr. Rabb suffered any concussions in the past?"
"Yes." Webb answered before Mac could get a word in. She was beginning to glare at him without bothering to hide her aggravation.
"How many and how severe?"
"About five." Mac answered quickly. "And quite severe. He used to fly fighter jets."
"Ah. That would explain why he is still unconscious."
"Doctor? Care to explain to those of us not in the medical profession?" Webb asked.
"If Mr. Rabb has a history of concussions he may be in more danger than we previously thought. The more one suffers from concussions, even little ones, the more dangerous they become. I am going to admit Mr. Rabb for observation over night and hopefully we'll see him wake up soon." the doctor said with a brisk nod to no one in particular.
"Oh my God doctor, I didn't even think to ask, how are the others involved in the accident?" Mac asked quickly.
"As far as I know there was no other vehicle. The EMTs only mentioned Mr. Rabb. There is a police officer waiting to get a statement from Mr. Rabb, I'll ask him to come back in the morning and hopefully Mr. Rabb will be able to answer the officer's questions."
As Webb opened his mouth to say something, Mac put her hand on the doctor's arm. "May I speak to the officer please?" she said before Webb could speak.
"I don't see why not. He should be in the cafeteria. Up two floors, make a right off the elevators." the doctor provided.
"Thank you doctor." Mac said warmly. She was still worried about Harm, but not as much as she had been on the hurried drive over. "I should be back before he's ready to be moved to a room."
"You're probably right Ms. MacKenzie."
As Mac made her way to the elevators she found Webb following her. "What do you want?" she hissed at him.
"I'm curious what this police officer has to say."
"What are you doing here anyway?"
"Just concerned for the well being of a co-worker."
"How did you even know?" Mac asked in confusion. "Did Harm list you as a next of kin as well?" she added sarcastically.
"Oh, I'm not so lucky as you. I had to rely on a guy, who knows a guy, who keeps an eye on hospitals for me." Webb said with a smirk as they entered the elevators.
Silently the two rode up to the third floor. Making their way to the cafeteria, they immediately spotted the officer nursing a coffee and looking bored. Mac quickly stepped up to him, before Webb could, and cleared her throat. "Excuse me, are you waiting to speak to Harmon Rabb?"
"Yeah, but you aren't him." the police officer said in a tired voice.
"I'm sorry, I'm Sarah MacKenzie, his attorney. Could you please tell me about the accident?"
"Who's he?" the police officer said with a nod in Webb's direction.
"He works with Mr. Rabb." Mac said, knowing Clayton would not want her to divulge his CIA connections.
"Well it appears that Mr. Rabb was in a single vehicle accident on the Beltway. We're not too sure of what happened yet, but he rolled his car and was apparently thrown clear. We found him a good twenty feet from the wreckage. It's too bad really. That car of his was something, not sure what's going hurt him more. His head or knowing his car is totalled. Is he awake?"
"No, not yet. The doctor is going to come speak with you in a moment about that. Is there anything else you can tell me?" Mac asked after sighing. She silently agreed with the cop. Harm was probably going to be more upset about losing his 'vette, especially after restoring her completely by hand.
"Not until we speak to Mr. Rabb." the cop answered. Glancing at the clock on the wall he sighed. "I'll be back in the morning to see if Mr. Rabb has come around then. No point in sitting on my hands now, and its not like he's going anywhere. Excuse me, there's the doctor now."
As the cop walked away Mac looked at Webb carefully. "Do you know what happened tonight?" she asked coldly.
"What am I, his babysitter? All I know is he was scheduled to come in soon for final clearance to return to work. Haven't seen him since his debrief. Thought you might know." Webb added bitterly.
Mac looked at Webb carefully. Somewhere in the back of her mind something didn't seem right, but she didn't know what. "Webb, if I find out you're holding out on me, so help me God."
"Sarah, would I hold out on you?" Webb asked.
"Yes, you would if it suited your purposes. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go sit with Harm." Mac said as she moved away from the spy.
"You know, he doesn't even talk about you anymore." Webb called out.
"Excuse me?" Mac asked frostily.
"Harm. He doesn't talk about you, at all. Hasn't since he came to work for us. And I know he didn't tell you where he was. Seems to me he's moved on Sarah. Shouldn't you?"
Mac spun around and rapidly closed the distance between her and Webb. Reaching out she poked a hard finger into his chest. "Look Webb, my relationship with Harm is none of your damn business, it never has been. Harm's moving on or not, and my moving on or not is something he and I are going to have to discuss. Not you and I, not you and him. Stay the hell out of it."
Holding his hands up in the air Webb stepped back a half step. "Sarah, darling, I'm just trying to watch out for you. You know I care about you."
Coldly, Mac glared at Webb. "You don't care about me, you can't. You only care about yourself and your job, and you only watch out for yourself Webb. Stay the hell away from me."
Spinning on her heel she strode briskly towards the elevator to return to the ER and Harm. " OH, and don't call me darling." she shot back over her shoulder. "Unless you want to find out what it feels like to have your large intestine nailed to a wall."
If she would have looked back at Webb before she got on the elevator she would have seen something on his face few have seen; blind, mad rage.
A Man Called Ghost
Chapter 19
Harm angrily jabbed his key into the ignition and started his Corvette. Gunning the engine a little, he peeled out of the parking lot not even seeing Mac watch him storm off once more. As he drove away from the restaurant he didn't realize how tightly he was gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles started to ache. Consciously relaxing his grip a little he began swearing to himself.
Who the hell did they think they were? What the hell gave them the right? He just knew both Beth and Mac were involved; she didn't just 'happen' to know which restaurant Beth was taking him to. Damn them. Why the hell couldn't they leave him alone?
Tugging the wheel to the right, Harm flew around a corner and pushed the accelerator down a bit more to open the engine up. He wasn't even paying attention to his speed as he pounded on the steering wheel and cursed.
Why? Why wouldn't she just accept that he let her go? Why couldn't she move on? She said he wouldn't let her, but he was trying. God, it hurt, but he was trying. He had tried to forget her, when he was doing his training, when he was with the SEALs and SAS, but he couldn't. Still, as time had gone on his remembering became less painful; never gone, always there, but it didn't tear at his heart as much. Then he'd seen her again, at the restaurant with Webb, in Iraq on the op, at the Roberts house for AJ's party. Every time he saw her it hurt a little more. Every time he saw her those feelings grew.
Now she was seeking him out, rubbing in that pain.
"FUCK!" Harm screamed as he swerved to get around another car. At least the 'vette handled well.
Feeling frustrated he tromped down on the brake as he hit a red light. When the light changed to green, Harm floored the car and flew through the gears as he rocketed to a speed he was comfortable with. God he needed a drink.
Harm had been driving for awhile and hadn't even noticed that he wasn't anywhere near his apartment. Apparently his mind didn't want him to go home yet. Fine, he still needed to blow off the steam that he'd built up after being ambushed by Mac.
For an hour Harm drove around; at times pushing his car to its limits, other times crawling along as he drove lost in thought. A part of him that he thought had died was speaking to him, telling him to go to her, telling him how much he needed to be with her. Furious with himself, Harm tried to force that voice back down where he'd buried it a year before.
Mac had been sitting outside Harm's apartment for almost an hour; 47 minutes and 12 seconds to be exact. She'd figured he'd either head home or to the Wall after peeling out of the parking lot like that. She'd gone to the Wall first and didn't find him there, then she came to his apartment. Still no sign of Harm though, and she was starting to get anxious. She'd thought about leaving on and off the whole time she was here. Finally she opened her car door and steeled herself. Quickly she made her way across the street and up to Harm's apartment. After knocking and waiting for five minutes she pulled out her "emergency" key and carefully opened his door. Carefully, she moved into his apartment and called out "Harm?" She stood just inside the door waiting for an answer for two minutes. Slowly, comma she stepped further into the apartment and closed the door. Sitting down on the couch she decided to wait for him to come home. After awhile she laid down to do her waiting, it wasn't long before she fell asleep.
Mac wasn't sure how long she'd been laying there when the ringing of her cell phone interrupted her sleep. Fumbling, she found her purse on the floor and pulled out her phone. "MacKenzie." she answered groggily.
"I'm sorry, is this Sarah MacKenzie?"
"Yes it is. Who is this?" Mac asked in confusion. She didn't recognize the voice and she didn't give her cell phone number out to many people.
"This is George Washington Hospital, we have a patient in emergency who has listed you as their next of kin..."
Mac's breath caught at the words, she was wide awake now. "Harm? Is he alright?" she asked in a hurry.
"I'm sorry I don't have any information...." The calm voice began.
"I'm on my way there!" Mac said hastily and then hung up on the doctor. As she rushed out of Harm's apartment she thought for a moment about phoning the Admiral but decided to hold off for now. She'd see how bad it was before she phoned anyone else. The drive to the hospital was a blur as she pushed traffic laws to the very breaking point. Sliding into a parking spot she flew from her car into the emergency room waiting area.
Running up to the nurse's station Mac looked at the elderly lady behind the desk. "I'm looking for a Harmon Rabb."
"One moment please...ah yes. He's in exam room 3." the elderly nurse said in a neutral tone of voice. "Doctor Warren is with him right now."
Mac quickly stepped away from the station and started looking for exam room 3 wherever that was. As she looked around in confusion a short chubby man stepped up to her. "Ms. MacKenzie?"
"Yes?"
"I'm Doctor Warren. Elise told me someone was looking for Mr. Rabb. Right this way please." the doctor said politely and then led Mac towards a room down the hall. Outside the room he stopped and then put a gentle hand on Mac's arm. "Ms. MacKenzie, before we go in I feel I should warn you Mr. Rabb was in a car accident, and he looks a lot worse than he really is. The most significant injury he sustained was a blow to his head which appears to have caused a significant concussion. Other than that it is mostly bumps and bruises, though he does have some cracked ribs as well. You may notice he will have difficulty breathing until those ribs heal if he's not careful."
Mac took a deep breath at the doctor's diagnosis. The concussion was the most serious thing; especially considering he'd had so many in his life. "A concussion?"
"Yes. Now he's still unconscious so maybe you can answer some questions for me before we go in?"
"I want to see him first, and then I'll answer your questions." Mac said with steel in her voice.
"Really, it is in Mr. Rabb's best interest to have the questions answered as soon as possible." the doctor said without missing a beat. Whoever this woman was, the doctor had dealt with worse in the GW emergency room.
"Damn it doctor, if you don't get out of my way you'll be visiting your own emergency room!" Mac thundered in her best AJ Chegwidden impersonation. "I'll answer all your questions after I see him."
Doctor Warren unconsciously took a step back from this slender lady in front of him. Perhaps he hadn't dealt with worse before. "Very well, but I will not be held accountable..."
"I'm not going to sue you doctor, and I waive the right to do so. Just let me in to see him."
Doctor Warren reached out and slowly opened the door, standing aside to let Mac enter the room. Cautiously she stepped inside and stopped with a small cry. She brought her hand to her mouth at the sight of Harm laying in the hospital bed all battered and bruised with a bandage wrapped around his head. With hurried steps she crossed the distance to his bedside carefully putting her hand to his forehead to brush the hair from his eyes. For the first time she really noticed how shaggy it was, or maybe it was just the way it stuck up from under the bandages. "Oh Harm." she said softly. "This is becoming too much of a habit with you."
After a few minutes of watching his chest rise and fall in time to the beeping of the machines surrounding him, Mac turned back to the doctor. "What are your questions doctor?"
"Perhaps we should step outside..."
"No, ask them here." Mac said steadily.
"Very well." the doctor said with a sigh. "During my examination I noticed that his back is covered in fresh scars, as well as a number of old scars. Do you know the nature of these wounds?"
"It was..." Mac started only to be interrupted.
"A workplace injury." a familiar voice said as Clayton Webb strode into the room.
"And you are?" the doctor asked with a raised eyebrow.
"A representative of his employer." Webb said with a smirk.
"And the scars on his leg?"
"The result of reconstructive surgery brought about by the same injury." Webb answered again.
"Has Mr. Rabb suffered any concussions in the past?"
"Yes." Webb answered before Mac could get a word in. She was beginning to glare at him without bothering to hide her aggravation.
"How many and how severe?"
"About five." Mac answered quickly. "And quite severe. He used to fly fighter jets."
"Ah. That would explain why he is still unconscious."
"Doctor? Care to explain to those of us not in the medical profession?" Webb asked.
"If Mr. Rabb has a history of concussions he may be in more danger than we previously thought. The more one suffers from concussions, even little ones, the more dangerous they become. I am going to admit Mr. Rabb for observation over night and hopefully we'll see him wake up soon." the doctor said with a brisk nod to no one in particular.
"Oh my God doctor, I didn't even think to ask, how are the others involved in the accident?" Mac asked quickly.
"As far as I know there was no other vehicle. The EMTs only mentioned Mr. Rabb. There is a police officer waiting to get a statement from Mr. Rabb, I'll ask him to come back in the morning and hopefully Mr. Rabb will be able to answer the officer's questions."
As Webb opened his mouth to say something, Mac put her hand on the doctor's arm. "May I speak to the officer please?" she said before Webb could speak.
"I don't see why not. He should be in the cafeteria. Up two floors, make a right off the elevators." the doctor provided.
"Thank you doctor." Mac said warmly. She was still worried about Harm, but not as much as she had been on the hurried drive over. "I should be back before he's ready to be moved to a room."
"You're probably right Ms. MacKenzie."
As Mac made her way to the elevators she found Webb following her. "What do you want?" she hissed at him.
"I'm curious what this police officer has to say."
"What are you doing here anyway?"
"Just concerned for the well being of a co-worker."
"How did you even know?" Mac asked in confusion. "Did Harm list you as a next of kin as well?" she added sarcastically.
"Oh, I'm not so lucky as you. I had to rely on a guy, who knows a guy, who keeps an eye on hospitals for me." Webb said with a smirk as they entered the elevators.
Silently the two rode up to the third floor. Making their way to the cafeteria, they immediately spotted the officer nursing a coffee and looking bored. Mac quickly stepped up to him, before Webb could, and cleared her throat. "Excuse me, are you waiting to speak to Harmon Rabb?"
"Yeah, but you aren't him." the police officer said in a tired voice.
"I'm sorry, I'm Sarah MacKenzie, his attorney. Could you please tell me about the accident?"
"Who's he?" the police officer said with a nod in Webb's direction.
"He works with Mr. Rabb." Mac said, knowing Clayton would not want her to divulge his CIA connections.
"Well it appears that Mr. Rabb was in a single vehicle accident on the Beltway. We're not too sure of what happened yet, but he rolled his car and was apparently thrown clear. We found him a good twenty feet from the wreckage. It's too bad really. That car of his was something, not sure what's going hurt him more. His head or knowing his car is totalled. Is he awake?"
"No, not yet. The doctor is going to come speak with you in a moment about that. Is there anything else you can tell me?" Mac asked after sighing. She silently agreed with the cop. Harm was probably going to be more upset about losing his 'vette, especially after restoring her completely by hand.
"Not until we speak to Mr. Rabb." the cop answered. Glancing at the clock on the wall he sighed. "I'll be back in the morning to see if Mr. Rabb has come around then. No point in sitting on my hands now, and its not like he's going anywhere. Excuse me, there's the doctor now."
As the cop walked away Mac looked at Webb carefully. "Do you know what happened tonight?" she asked coldly.
"What am I, his babysitter? All I know is he was scheduled to come in soon for final clearance to return to work. Haven't seen him since his debrief. Thought you might know." Webb added bitterly.
Mac looked at Webb carefully. Somewhere in the back of her mind something didn't seem right, but she didn't know what. "Webb, if I find out you're holding out on me, so help me God."
"Sarah, would I hold out on you?" Webb asked.
"Yes, you would if it suited your purposes. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go sit with Harm." Mac said as she moved away from the spy.
"You know, he doesn't even talk about you anymore." Webb called out.
"Excuse me?" Mac asked frostily.
"Harm. He doesn't talk about you, at all. Hasn't since he came to work for us. And I know he didn't tell you where he was. Seems to me he's moved on Sarah. Shouldn't you?"
Mac spun around and rapidly closed the distance between her and Webb. Reaching out she poked a hard finger into his chest. "Look Webb, my relationship with Harm is none of your damn business, it never has been. Harm's moving on or not, and my moving on or not is something he and I are going to have to discuss. Not you and I, not you and him. Stay the hell out of it."
Holding his hands up in the air Webb stepped back a half step. "Sarah, darling, I'm just trying to watch out for you. You know I care about you."
Coldly, Mac glared at Webb. "You don't care about me, you can't. You only care about yourself and your job, and you only watch out for yourself Webb. Stay the hell away from me."
Spinning on her heel she strode briskly towards the elevator to return to the ER and Harm. " OH, and don't call me darling." she shot back over her shoulder. "Unless you want to find out what it feels like to have your large intestine nailed to a wall."
If she would have looked back at Webb before she got on the elevator she would have seen something on his face few have seen; blind, mad rage.