Well, some people are going to cheer while others will groan. ;) More on Monday though:)
Jackie
Thanks to: XBlueShadowX, Aimee5, Charmboy4, starryeyes10, Nikki, dansingwolf, jag4ever, lei, Jackia, EternalSleep, Cristina, Tina Frank, achaon, Abigaile, Hieros Gamos, froggy0319, joanoa, JadeAlmasy, SpaceMan546, dansingwolf, carbygirl , JAGJenni, Manda, starryeyes, BiteBeccy, ng59678, LtColDevilDog, martini, mizukimarr, jtbwriter, Macaroon, Lissie, n.k, Lt.jgMegAustin, cbw, dansingwolf, Apion, alix33, jnp, MacHarm4Ever, Tania, Macaroon, harmfan, Jagnut, Claire Vincent, Navy Babe, Nix, Martini, jaggurl, Laura, CoolCat, sunnysky, smithknk, mjag, FoxyWombat, carbygirl, moonlight, socgrl, NinjaTurtle, Sunny, kristie, mjag. Aserene, Dessler, moonlight, southernqt, LiseGirardi, Jade, Smithknkand anyone else I missed for the Feedback
Part 14 – Perfect Calculation
1400 Zulu
North East Of Corner Brook
Newfoundland, Canada
There was one welcomed thing about her having to wear the abaya and shayla, the bulky clothing kept her warm and were much cleaner than the clothing she had on before. It also kept her "hidden" away from the other men in the camp, the ones that would ogle her in ways that made her feel disgusting. Sometimes being 'unseen' was a good thing. As Temir led her through the camp, Mac could see the two Aurora's parked one behind the other, just waiting for their time to fly. 'Wow.' Mac though, as she stared at the planes a moment longer. 'Tax payers dollars at work.' There was a group of men that had a computer attached to one of the planes, but by the yelling going on back and forth, it was obvious they were having difficulties accomplishing anything.
Temir shoved her slightly to the side as they came about the cabin that housed their captives. "Khadija, out!" He yelled in English, noting that she was a bit too comfortable around Harm. That was something he would remedy once they entered his cabin.
Mac was pushed into the cabin, her fall broken by Harm who'd reached out to catch her. "Steady Marine." He looked her over, furling his brow slightly in confusion as to what she was wearing. As his eyes moved to her face, he noticed the bruise, one much worse than the one she had before. "Mac, What happened?"
Temir cleared his throat and stepped into the cabin. "Nothing happened, Commander. . . I was just teaching her how to behave like a proper Muslim woman."
Harm glanced at the bruise again and he saw a hidden fear in Mac's eyes that she was trying to mask. "You son of a . . ." Stepping away from her, he tried to launch himself at Temir, but the move was anticipated.
For his troubles, he was given a hard whack on his abdomen with Temir's knee and collapsed, slightly winded. "Tsk tsk tsk, Commander, now now. . .there's no need for violence." He used his foot to push Harm onto his six then walked, unabashed towards Mac. "Colonel, try to keep your friend acting properly." Taking her hand, he kissed the back of it and smiled at her. "Until later."
Mac waited for him to leave before kneeling down next to Harm, "Are you okay?" He only answered her with a nod. Frowning, she helped him stand, then move across the cabin to the cots. She eased him down into one and sat at the edge. "I brought you something." From under the abaya, she produced two bananas and an apple which she placed on a small crate next to the cots. "I would have taken more, but that was all I could sneak out without him noticing." She pulled off the shayla and placed it on the crate with a huff. "Hate those stupid things."
Harm stared at her clothing as if seeing her in an abaya for the first time. "Why?" He touched the edges of it and frowned.
"Long story." She sighed.
"At least you'll be warm." Slowly he straightened, taking a deep breath. Taking a look around, noting that they were alone, he happily reached for the banana. "Thank you, the gruel they brought me was anything but edible." He pointed over at the plate and noticed Mac cringe at it's contents.
Looking at the contents, Mac felt her stomach churn slightly. Was that what they were giving him before? Did he survive in this way? By the looks of whatever was on the plate, it accounted for Harm's drastic reduction in weight. When she turned her head back to him, he was already done with one banana and starting on the apple. "We have to find a way to get out of here." Her suggestion was met with a nod. "Maybe you can play sick again?. . ." He shook his head 'no' and Mac sighed in exasperation. "They need you, maybe, if you pretend we can get out of this."
Harm swallowed down the chunks of apple in his mouth and cleared his throat. "If they think I am sick, then they'll never leave me alone. . . Maybe I can get Khadija to help again. . .I got her to turn last time. She may be willing to. . ."
"This time, I doubt she'll lift a finger." Mac said with a sad confidence, she only wished it were that easy. "I believe she is jealous of Temir and I." The way that came out, made her cringe, but it was the truth.
Harm took in the sight of her in the clean abaya and the fact that she had fresh fruit as a sign that Temir may have been a bit too interested in Mac for his own good. Jokingly, he said, "Maybe I should be too? Jealous I mean?"
For his joke, what he received was a stern look from Mac which quickly took on a somber look. "He. . .he took my dog tags, Harm. . .he took the ring." Temir was right, memories should be enough, but Harm was far from being dead and that ring held so many promises between them. Mac was sure she'd never let it go. "I wanted to stop him, but. . .he took it Harm. . .he just took it."
"It's just a ring Mac. . .I'm not going to stop feeling what I feel for you because some terrorist took it from you."
It was typical for him not to understand that, to her, it wasn't 'just a ring.' It was the one thing that was part of his family, the one thing that kept her tied down to the belief that he wasn't gone. Every time she wanted a drink, every time she believe him to be gone, that ring, for some unknown reason, made her have hope. "No, it was more than that. . .it's what kept me going when everyone thought you were gone. . ." The way she said that made his heart ache a little. He understood, and he vowed himself to get it back.
The rest of the day had been somewhat of an oddity. In the near distance, they could hear armament being blown to smithereens. There was a hustle and bustle in the camp unlike anything Harm had experienced before. Often they would hear Temir barking orders in Farsi or Arabic, orders that Mac would translate for Harm. Apparently, his men had stowed the armament incorrectly and, as a result, some of it had become unstable, forcing them to blow it up. This, of course, meant that they had to send a crew out to get more or at least, attempt to. According to one of Temir's soldiers, the Canadian government was starting to get nosy and they were running out of 'hush' money.
Towards the early evening, the cabin door opened and in came Khadija followed by one of their guards. In front of Harm, they placed the typical, gruel, disgusting meal that he was repulsed by. However, in front of Mac, the guard placed a tray full of fresh fruits, bread and even some wine. Taking the wine, Mac handed it to Harm, followed by half of the bread and fruit. But, Khadija would have non of it. 'No! The fruit is only for the Colonel!' She said in Farsi, startling both Harm and Mac who looked up at her in confusion.
"If the fruits are for me, Khadija, I have a right to share them with my friend." Mac responded in English. "He needs to eat, look how thin he is."
Harm made to bite into a peach, when Khadija barreled between him and Mac, tossing the fruits onto the floor. "No! You not eat!" She said with anger, then grabbed the plate of gruel and offered it to Harm. "You eat this." She took an apple from the ground and shoved it towards Mac. "Eat."
Mac took the apple and glanced at Harm who was looking back at her with a confused expression. 'Khadija, what is going on? What is wrong?' She asked in Farsi, but the only answer received was a gun being pointed at the two of them.
"Eat!" Khadija yelled at Mac, pointing towards the apple with anger. "No eat, I shoot Commander." She cocked the weapon and pointed it at Harm. "Woman, eat!"
"Okay. . .okay." Taking the apple firmly in her hand, Mac was about to bite into it, when Temir burst through the door.
Shots went off inside the cabin. One, two, three; four shots in total. In that short time span, Harm had thrown himself onto Mac, sending them both to the ground. His hands curled over her head and the rest of him covered her body. When the shots finished, it took him a moment to check that neither of them were hit before comprehension hit. The shots were not aimed at him nor her, then what happened?
Harm moved himself up first, glancing over the cot to find Temir holding a smoking gun and Khadija no where to be found. He offered a hand down to Mac, and then pulled them both up. From their vantage point, the could now see who was the recipient of all the lead. "Why?" Harm said softly, glancing down at the blood pooling around a dead Khadija. She was laying face down, with all four bullet holes in her back, she didn't even have a chance to react. "Why did you do that?"
Temir picked up an apple from the ground, one that was now covered with blood. "She poisoned the wine and fruit for the Colonel."
Mac stared wide-eyed at Harm. "That's why she didn't allow you to eat it. . . Why would she do this?"
"Jealousy. . . Apparently I need to take better care of you." Temir moved across the room to the small wooden crate and took Mac's shayla before reaching over to grab Mac herself. "Let's go Colonel."
It was probably a stupid thing to do, but Mac fought him, slipping her arm out of his hand and backing up a few feet. "I am not going anywhere." She said vehemently then spread her arms wide when he made to point the weapon at her. "You can shoot me if you want, but I am not leaving him."
Temir took a deep breath, he was getting tired of these two, tired of it all. "It's not a request, Colonel." He pointed the gun at Harm and with a perfect calculation, pulled the trigger.
"NO!" Mac yelled as the bullet hit Harm. "Oh God, no!." She saw him dive down, trying to avoid the bullet, and then she saw the blood. Harm wasn't moving. "No! No! You sick bastard! No!" She tried to go to Harm's side, to make sure he was still alive, but Temir never gave her a chance. He called in two guards who held her back even thought she was using an unnatural force to try and escape. "Let me go! Please!"
'Take her to my cabin.' Temir ordered in Arabic his eyes never leaving Harm's prone figure. With a smirk, he carefully stepped over Khadija's body and made his way over to Harm. "Commander, I know where I shot you, faking it won't do you justice." With his foot, he turned Harm over to his back, noticing that he was, indeed out cold. The bullet had just grazed his arm, but in the momentum to move away, his head came in contact with an elevated section of the floor where the wooden crate sat. "Ah, Commander, don't make your life any harder. I can't have you flying if you have a concussion." With a sick laughter, he kicked Harm in the ribs, insuring himself that his toy was really out cold. "Oh, things just keep getting better."
The guards set her roughly down on the bed in Temir's cabin, but Mac hardly felt it. She hardly felt anything at all save for a dull ache in her heart. Words from seven months prior came to her mind as the General filled her in on what they thought they knew. Harm was dead, he had no hopes of surviving if the Aurora's had exploded like the CIA had claimed. He would die a hero. It was surreal then, mainly because there was no corpse to mourn over, just a damned empty casket in Arlington. It felt like a farce and it was a farce, but now. . .now. . .he was dead. Still, she felt something alive in side of her. Even as the tears rolled freely down her face, Mac felt that something wasn't as it should be. There wasn't that zing of excommunication that she'd felt the night he was dying in the frozen waters of the Atlantic. No, this was entirely different, almost as if he weren't dead at all.
When Temir entered the cabin, he was more than surprised to find such an anguished look on Mac's face. "My dear, do not be so sad. . . Allah, has granted you another day."
Mac stared at him with disgust. "Another day to what?"
"To be, to live. . . to enjoy life." His smile was genuine, as if he actually DID care about her, and what was going on with her life. It was meant to put Mac at ease and did anything but. "You are now free, Colonel. . . Tell me, what is your real name?" He knew the answer already, it was in the records he'd had stashed away for a long time. Actually, he knew much about her, where she was born, when she was born, how long she'd been in the Corps. Basic information found in a service record that was sent to him along with Harm's. Her picture was in it as well and it was then that he'd noticed something different in her eyes and the shape of her face. She was part of his people, someone that he didn't want to hurt, someone that he would teach the proper way of life. He wouldn't admit it, but he'd become quite infatuated with Mac. And for psychopaths, that feeling of infatuation made them feel something incorrect: love.
The adoration in his eyes was truly nauseating. Mac found herself backing up into a corner just to stay the hell away from the man. She kept a close eye on him, waiting for the right moment to strike and use her training to get out of this hairy situation. "What do you want from me?" She asked, her voice shaking slightly form adrenalin.
Temir just smiled at her, as he squatted down next to her. "I just want you to be mine, Sarah."
Sarah, she was never really fond of that name. First, it reminded her of a childhood that she'd soon forget. Second, it brought back strangled memories of the men that had gone past her life, men she was sure she never loved. Third, it was private, personal, a name that made her a vulnerable woman instead of a warrior. And that name, coming from a Man like Temir, made her feel exactly that: vulnerable. "Don't call me that."
"Why not? It's such a pretty name." He pulled out her dog tags and the ring, dangling them in front of her. "Tell me, did your lover call you Sarah when you made love?"
Mac shook her head, an unwillingness to answer. Had Harm called her 'Sarah?' Yes, he had and it had to be the first time that name sounded so right. But, she wouldn't give Temir the satisfaction of knowing anything else from her personal life. "Those are mine." She said with spite, wanting to lunge herself at the man and take what was hers.
"Ah, yes, so they are." He balled up the chain and slid it carefully into his pant pocket before squatting down next to Mac. His hand darted out slowly, touching the fabric of the abaya as he grazed his hand over her arm. "You must stop resisting." He ignored the shock look in her eyes and instead, kept looking at his fingers moving slowly towards her shoulder. "If you resist, I'll have to take what I want by force. . . you do not want that."
"No, I don't." She said gently, all the while keeping an eye on their surroundings. They were alone, completely alone. For the first time since they got dropped into this hell, she noticed that there were no guards posted a the door. "No guards." She said just as softly again.
Temir shook his head. His fingers moved gently over her bruised cheek, caressing her as a lover would. "No, private moments between man and woman should be just that. . .private." He framed her face with his hands, forcing her to look directly into his eyes. "Soon, you'll find that I am not as bad as your people made you believe. . .I can be quite gentle and loving, Sarah. . . if you let me."
This was it, she knew it, this was the chance she was waiting for. If he were caught off guard, for just a moment, it would be enough for her to get free and find a way to get to Harm. Mac took a deep, calming breath and glanced into Temir's eyes. 'Pretend he's Harm.' She told herself, willing her eyes to soften and look at this man with a loving look. Mac was urging him to come closer and as he moved in, one of the guards moved into the room, excusing himself then speaking in Arabic. He told Temir that Harm was still out cold, but that he was alive.
Temir nodded. 'Let him sleep it off, Jabi. . .and please, do not disturb us."
Mac breathed a sigh of relief, thanking her lucky stars that Harm still was among the living. Now all she had to do was get to him. "What language were you speaking?" She said, trying to play dumb in hopes that he didn't realize she understood Arabic quite well.
"It doesn't matter. . ." His hand started it's slow exploration on her arm as he drew himself closer to her. "You are beauti. . ."
Whack! Finally, he'd gotten close enough for her to do some serious damage. Mac had one eye to the door, the other on Temir and once the guard that had just walked in moved away, she took the chance to misuse his new trust of her. With a quick movement she brought her palm up, crushing his nose with a calculated force. Temir was out cold. From the table, she retrieved a 45 and the keys to Harm's cabin. Just in case, she dragged Temir's body through the cabin, placing him securely in the back bedroom so that the guards would not be able to see anything wrong in the front bedroom of the cabin.
At the bedroom, she looked around and finding a suitable means of escape. She hopped onto the bed and opened the window behind it. Squeezing herself through she came out the other side landing on her feet with an 'umph,' as she did not calculate the distance very well. Immediately, she rolled herself under a Jeep that sat behind the cabin and remained their quietly as two guards passed by. Glancing up at the Jeep, she got the perfect idea.
Mac took stock of the area, noticing that no guards were planning on passing by. She rolled out from under the jeep and climbed inside of it. "C'mon, there has to be something I can use." She ducked under the seats, checking for anything she could use in order to turn the vehicle into some sort of a distraction. The answer came in form of a shotgun that was laying under the back seat. Taking the shotgun, she wedged it between the accelerator and the front seat. She found a box of shells and used her teeth to separate them and spread some of the gun powder along the jeep. From the back she took two cans of gasoline and doused the vehicle as much as possible. Mac put the Jeep in neutral and then, positioning herself under the dash, she made quick work of sparking the car to life, careful not to get the sparks anywhere near the gas.
The roar of the engine filled the dead, cold air and with a quick movement, she shoved the car into gear, managing to step back in time as it went off rolling off with a force of vengeance. Mac stood by, waiting with baited breath, but nothing happened. Oh, the Jeep did hit something and there was a loud crashing sound, but not the great, big, 'BOOM' she was expecting. "Shit!" She said out loud and, a moment later, almost as if compensation for her troubles, the jeep exploded. The force sent her to the ground as another explosion literally shook the earth. The Jeep had collided with a small shack where the rest of the armament was being held.
The whole thing sent everyone in motion. Guards were running towards the area, leaving their posts in order to salvage more arms before they two became part of the powder keg, killing most of the men nearby. Mac took this opportunity to run towards the cabin where Harm was. "Please be ok." She said under her breath as she fumbled with the locks. Walking in, she spotted Khadija's dead body and was filled with instant disgust that Temir could have left her there as if she meant nothing.
Behind her, she heard something fall to the floor with a rattling sound. Turning around, she saw Harm who was formerly holding a tray over his head in hopes to strike someone over the head. He looked dazed, confused and had a rather nasty mark on his forehead. "Mac?" He walked forward and enveloped her in a hug. "What's going on out there?"
Mac ran her hands over him, making sure that there were no serious injuries. His arm was shot, but, it was not a direct hit, just a scratch. "A distraction, now get your six in gear, flyboy, we have two birds to get out of here." Harm and Mac rushed out of the cabin, heading straight for the planes. One of the men made to rush them, but Harm managed to slug him as hard as possible, sending the man to the ground with a single punch. Mac striped the guard of his weapon and continued their run for the planes. Harm glanced at one plane, then took a long, hard, look at the other. "Uh, flyboy, this isn't time to glance at the planes nifty aesthetic features." But, he didn't answer her, instead continued to look at the planes with an odd expression. "Harm?"
Harm's head was pounding, it was becoming difficult for him to think about what he needed to do. 'Think, Hammer, think!' Feeling the side of the plane, he found the mechanism and opened the canopy. Then he worked on pulling down the steps. Climbing in, he was surprised to find the helmets and flight suits neatly resting on the seats. He took one helmet and suit and tossed them down to Mac. "Put those on." He doubted that they would fit her, but it didn't really matter, he needed her to be shielded from the harsh environment that Aurora flew in.
"How are we going to take off? I don't see a runway." Mac scanned the area better seeing nothing but trees, mountains and brush.
"That way." Harm said, pointing his finger down a dirt road that seemed to cut off just as it was about to hit the mountain. "There's a dirt road that veers off to the left there. . . I remember them quizzing Andy as to how long of a runway we needed to take off. They knew they couldn't make it out of asphalt, but dirt is a different idea, it won't be as easily picked up by satellites. In Nevada we can land them on the dry lake beds." He stared towards the dirt road and sighed. "Just pray we don't kick anything up into the engines."
Taking his own flight suit, he started to step into it when a shot ricocheted off a tree nearby. He pushed Mac onto the ground, covering her body with his. From under the planes he tried to make out where the shots were coming from. It was Temir, "Commander! Colonel!"
Harm stared down at Mac and quickly helped her up. "Climb into the backseat and try to get the radio working, the way I taught you. . . When you get in there, stay down low, he won't shoot at the planes." He pushed Mac halfway up the steps, then headed off into the brush as another bullet whizzed by and hit another tree.
"Wait, what are you going to do?" Mac glanced at him with a fear in her eyes, now wasn't the time to go toe to toe with Temir. They needed to get the planes in the air and out of the area. A faint smell of gasoline hung in the air, carried by the wind which was now hitting their direction. She turned her head only to witness another explosion from the vicinity of the Jeep. But, there was something else that she didn't quite notice before. Gas had leaked from the jeep and there was now a fine line of brush on fire. The flames licked their way to the cabins and one was already catching on fire. This was good yes, but, if the flames spread quickly, they would eat up the barn causing the rest of the arms to explode. The planes were far too close to that area for comfort.
Harm tried to keep low in the brush, tossing pebbles as a way to distract Temir, or at least, get him to empty the pistol. "Where are you going Commander?"
"Oh, just thought I'd take the lady for a ride." He rushed at Temir from behind, sending the both of them to the rocky ground. Harm screamed in pain as his injured arm wound up under him, hitting the rocks on the ground. That momentary pause, gave the terrorist a chance to try and get the upper hand. But, Harm had a better idea. He brought his head down hard against Temir, temporarily disorienting the two of them. Wobbling, he stood up and kicked the terrorist hard against his abdomen. "That is for me. ." Bending down, he grabbed Temir by the collar, angling him just so he could punch him as hard as possible. "That is for Mac."
He made to hit the terrorist one more time, for Andy, but Temir placed a solid kick on Harm's bad knee, sending him back into the ground with a glottal cry. "Ah, see Commander." Temir began, in a voice that sounded nasally and tired. "You American's are all talk. . .no action."
'Fake it.' Harm heard Mac's voice in his head. 'Fake it, Harm.' He doubled over, pretending the pain in his knee was far worse than it was. When Temir turned to retrieve the pistol from the ground, Harm flung a large rock, hitting the terrorist directly on the back. In three movements, Harm stood up again, lunging at Temir. He wrapped his arm across his neck, pushing backwards in an attempt to strangle. "Where is the ring you stole from her, you bastard?"
"Ring? . ." Temir choked out. "What. . .ring, Com-and-er?"
The more Temir fought to get free, the angrier Harm became. He had to end this or be tormented forever. "This is for Andy Watson." Grabbing Temir by the hair, he slammed him face first into a pointy rock, hearing skull crack followed by the terrorist's last breath. And then, he released the man. Harm stood quickly, not wanting to see what destruction he just created. Leaning against a tree he braced himself for a moment, trying to get his body working again. He turned the terrorist over, checking through the pockets until he found what had been taken from Mac. That's when he heard her yelling. Limping as fast as he could, he headed through the brush and to the planes. "Harm, hurry! This whole place is going to blow!"
Harmfan – Pepto! Lots of it. Temir suffered some, I rather liked Harm cracking his skull. And He got the ring back:D
Smithknk – Yes I can! Neener Neener! ;) Cliffhangers R Us, I should start a club. :glanes at fellow writers: you know you like doing it too!
Dansing – I knew people would get ticked by that, but not as bad as this! Wow, so many people wrote in about the ring! Yea, I know Temir nor Sadik would have acted as they have/did, being very liberal with it. We'll say they were confused with Mac's hotness LOL! Well, tonight I'll watch JAG in a drunken Haze which is how I managed to live through Season 9. :P I'll rewatch it tomorrow if there are points I remember. :P
Martini – There's an interesting ending and the next story has a rather familish beginning, some hard subjects and then some action/adventure/enemy from the past/possibly an imposter or two. ;)
Froggy – Am I nuts? That question has been raised several times. I'd say yes. But if I went to a therapist then the therapist would need a therapist and the therapist's therapist would need a therapist and then the therapist's therapist's therapist would need a therapist and. . .then all of the the rapists (therapists ;)) would be out of work and people who really do need help would be beyond help. Hmm… wow, that made sense. I think LOL!
Bite Beccy – Harm got it back, he's just not going to give it to her yet, they are a bit preoccupied as things are blowing up to stop 'Oh Mac, BTW, you're the hotness and I got yer ring back. Let's get it on, yea?' And then things really do start exploding as Mac is like 'Yo, Harm, your bod is like da bomb man, like wooh, but like uh, don't we like have to like git outta here, dood?' - Hmmm JAG on Crack LOL!
LtJGMEg – Can't you revive him? I need him damnit! Sheesh! Couldn't we have worked out a rent to own? ;)
Joanoa – Nah, he didn't need to be shot, just have his skull crushed. I like that barbaricness of it all. ;)
Tina Frank – Gotcha :does the checklist for the Harm Clone: So this is what? Harm Clone 3:;thinks about keeping all the clones to herself, sighs: anyway, she is tough! She got out of Temir's lair. Go Mac the Marine! ;)
Aserene – Harm got the ring back! See:points at it: Umm… course, he gave the ring to me, since like we're sooooooo in love. :Looks at it: Actually, damn, no it's a ring out of a cracker jack box. :( Harm no love me. Waaah! It's okay though, I have my clone. :D
Jtbwriter – Temir gave ME the creeps and I am the writer! The Angst Express. LOL! I like that. But, Michi and Carol's Angst O Meter is the ticket! I might need a few though LOL!
