Title: Reaching Out – Chapter 5
Author: Arian
Rating: PG-13 due to crime scene description
Disclaimers: If you saw my student loan bills you would never even think I may somehow make a profit off of this. I don't own anything related to JAG or NCIS, although in my other life as a career counselor heard the real NCIS has an amazing internship program.

A/N: Thank you for the great feedback! I admit I was concerned about posting a story, but everyone's support has been wonderful!
A/N2: I've been spending quite a bit of time on researching the area in which this story takes place. Yes there really is a Starbucks on the Corner of 19th and G Street NW.
A/N3: Thank you for the great reviews even while I was gone! Props to froggy0319, NavyCB, Maria, Jackia, Little Eirtae, aserene (glad I'm writing them true to character!), Maidenpride21 (I haven't read your story, where is it? goes to find it), Mari, and NavyBabe (I'll see what I can do!)

October 28th, 2004
Corner of 19th and G Street NW
1904 EST

"Sorry it took us so long to get here Agent Todd. Traffic in this part of town, especially this close to an election can be a bit tricky." Mac pulled her jacket a bit closer to her body to ward off the stiff wind that funneling between the buildings in the area. The Starbucks on the corner was calling her name, but if she ever wanted to get home tonight she needed to attend to business.

"Don't I know it. When we had to double park the van for access to the crime scene I thought there could be another murder on our hands." Kate grimaced while trying to keep her blowing hair out of her face. "Sorry to bring you out on such an awful night, but due to your previous interest in the Holmes case I thought you might want to see this. I'll warn you, it isn't pretty""

"Lead on Agent Todd." Harm waved his hand down the block to where yet another alley was roped off with yellow tape. Harm unconsciously put his hand on Mac's back to guide her around a fire hydrant and follow the other woman.

Turning the corner, Mac blew the breath out through her lungs in a gesture of resignation and sadness. Further down the alley was a swarm of agents, some taking samples, other taking yet more pictures. The difference with this crime scene however was the presence of a body. "We're almost done with preliminary documentation, and the coroner should be here any minute now. It won't take an autopsy to call this one." Kate led them both over to the form sprawled on the ground.

Agent McGee chose that exact moment to show up. "Hello Colonel, Commander. Can you believe it? Another murder, almost exactly the same as the scene we saw yesterday?" The man seemed to almost bounce with excitement, and earned a disapproving look from both Kate and Mac. He immediately calmed down, and took out his notebook to cover his embarrassment. "Due to identification on the body, we have concluded this is Ensign Amanda Rice, US Navy."

Harm let his gaze wander over the crime scene, not particularly wanting to see under the sheet that lay over the victim. "Scuff marks leading from the entrance of the alley again."

Mac completed his thought in a way that surprised the two NCIS agents. "Spray on the right hand alley wall again. I assume her throat was slashed?" At this Agent McGee lifted the sheet and Mac could see a young blonde woman with a deep ragged gash across her throat. "What else is similar?"

"Based on the position of the body and the marks on the ground, she was also killed facing out. The blood on the right hand wall indicates the killer was right handed. However, there are some differences." Kate indicated the opposite wall. "There is also blood on this wall, but it is smeared, and there is blood on the victim's hand. At the moment it looks as though she didn't die immediately, but stepped away from her assailant, bracing herself on the wall with her hand before falling to the ground. Whoever did this probably watched her bleed to death."

Mac frowned. "How can you conclude that?" She didn't like the picture this was painting. Someone was preying on young Navy women in the Capitol district, and apparently enjoying watching them die.

"Normally we wouldn't be able to. However, there is a partial footprint on the border of the pool of the victim's blood. There is also blood going in the other direction, consistent with someone walking away. Unless the murderer stayed until she was dead, the footprint would have been obscured by spreading blood." Kate's lips thinned, wary of telling the two attorneys the details revealed by Ensign Holmes' autopsy. "There's more."

Mac sighed. The more they found out the more likely NCIS was to catch whoever did this, but it wasn't easy to listen. "Go ahead."

"The wound on Petty Office Holmes was cast for weapon details. The cast and wound both indicated she was killed with a knife that tore through the skin at first, probably due to serration near the handle, and the very end of the wound was smooth, indicating that at least part of the blade was not. In examining Ensign Rice's wound, it is nearly identical."

"Other than the similarity, is there significance to that?" Harm wrinkled his forehead, trying to make a connection that wasn't immediately obvious to him.

"Yes Commander. There are several military issue knives which have a combination serrated and smooth blade. The slash pattern is a match for a KA-BAR Stainless Steele US Marine Corp Fighting Knife." Kate saw Colonel MacKenzie's spine stiffen and objections immediately come to her lips. However, the restraining hand Commander Rabb put on her arm stopped her before she got started.

"Thank you for informing us. Please keep us appraised. Let us know if we can expect to have this case coming to us, and if or when you determine a suspect." Immediately taking over the conversation, Harm ended it. The last thing he wanted was the logical side of Mac's personality coming up with eighteen ways anyone could have gotten a Marine Corps knife, and widening the gap between them and the forensics team.

Walking out of the alleyway, Mac exploded. "Harm, how could you do that? You know that the suspected weapon being a USMC issue knife doesn't mean anything! Without the actual weapon they can't do anything."

Harm had been expecting this, and was ready with the defense. "Mac, come on. They didn't say, 'hey we think a Marine did this,' they said the weapon may be Marine issue. They know just as well as we do that without the actual weapon it doesn't mean anything. Agent Todd was just trying to let us know to be ready in case this makes it to us."

Mac calmed down a bit at that, and shrugged sheepishly at her immediate defense of the corps. "You're right. I'm really more upset that there is a serial killer out there and it looks like a Marine."

"Not serial." At Mac's questioning eyebrow, he continued, "it takes three to be a serial killer. There are only two bodies." As he spoke Harm continued walking back towards the car, only to realize he was alone. Looking back, he noticed Mac had stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, looking up the street with a sad look on her face.

"You're wrong Harm. There are three. We just haven't found the third one yet." With that she nodded up the street.

Harm felt a chill run up his spine as he turned. Standing in a dark corner was a young petty officer. Her wet dark hair flowed down over her shoulders, tangling in the blood across her uniform. She was very obviously not Ensign Rice or Petty Officer Holmes. Harm could only assume Mac recognized the woman as being from her own dream. Flicking his gaze back to her, she nodded.

As Harm once again turned to the apparition in front of him, the Petty Officer raised her arm. Instead of a beckoning plea, this time she pointed. Doing a quick calculation in his head he determined the direction to be south, back toward Potomac Park. Then she vanished.
October 29th, 2004
JAG Headquarters
0814 EST

Mac sipped the coffee she had just poured from the fresh pot on the coffee maker. With the Admiral gone there were very few in the office that enjoyed "Marine-grade" coffee. 'Hmm, maybe Creswell will know how coffee is really supposed to take' she mused. Hearing footsteps approaching, she turned to the door in time to see Harm walk in. "Morning."

"Morning. Anything new last night?" Harm didn't want to admit it, but he had missed having Mac near him at night. It wasn't so much that he was afraid of seeing another ghost, but more the sense of peace her presence brought to his sleep. On the other hand, without her there he had not gotten any late night calls from the recently departed. Sometimes he wondered if she just attracted psychic energy.

"Nope. Nothing. Not even a dream, and I have no idea what that means." While she spoke she watched Harm fill his coffee mug, sniff it and then glance at her suspiciously. "I made it special grade just in case you lost sleep without me there," she said with a grin.

Rather than banter back immediately he saw his opportunity. "I'd much rather lose sleep with you there." At her shocked blush he decided a full-blown flyboy grin was in order, and departed the break room by tossing over his shoulder, "I've got some varnish on my desk I wanted to strip, this should do it."

Mac collected her completely scattered thoughts, picked her jaw up off the floor and made her way back to her office. Rather than feeling rushed or pressured, his comment had given her a warm feeling. Maybe she was ready. Unfortunately that wonderful line of thought was interrupted by one Commander Turner.

"Colonel? I assume Lt. Commander Roberts informed you of the SecNav's party this weekend?" Sturgis could think few things that would be less enjoyable than dressing up in some ridiculous costume for an event that had the sole purpose of mending political fences. However, it was necessary, and he always did what was expected of him. It had gotten him this far, and he didn't see any reason to change that now.

"Yes Commander he did." Mac could tell Sturgis didn't like the idea of the party, and she personally agreed.

"I realize it is short notice, have you been able to secure appropriate attire?" He had no idea what appropriate attire would really be considered, but was sure the Colonel would figure it out.

"No, I haven't. Commander Rabb and I were called to a crime scene last night, and I did not have the opportunity to go out and find something. Lt. Commander Roberts was going to ask his wife if she knew of any place." She had no idea why Sturgis would be concerned about something as trivial as her costume, but with the level of micromanaging he had be doing recently it didn't really surprise her. It seemed that he wanted control over everything under his watch. She could understand the tendency, and honestly pitied him for the extended duty he was pulling as interim JAG.

"Understood. Feel free to take some time today to take care of it; this will be an important event for JAG." He offered her a surprisingly sarcastic smile, and then left her office. Part of her wanted to shout 'duh, you think?' but the slightly self-deprecating manner he had displayed at the end of the conversation made her think the real Sturgis was really under there somewhere, only weighed down with his current command responsibilities.

A thought occurred to her, and she went over to the phone on her desk. Dialing a familiar extension, she waited for him to pick up and then asked, "Well Flyboy, do you want to play hooky and go get a costume?"

TBC

Next Chapter, on JAG...

Mac grinned at him. "Don't be such a party pooper. If we have to go to this damn thing, we might as well enjoy it."

"What, no concerns that the Major General will ship us off to the Aleutians for being out of uniform?" Harm smirked.

"Hey, at least we could keep each other warm."

"Miss Elaine, I think you have the wrong idea about the Commander and me. He is in no way mine by any means."

Miss Elaine looked at her in flat disbelief. That was definitely not what dear Harriet had told her. She had set up the beautifully pregnant woman with a costume only the day before, at which time she had gotten the entire scoop on her two newest customers. "Well then what the hell is wrong with you?" She asked with a brilliant smile. "It's neither here nor there; I know exactly which of my costumes was made for you."