Thanks to all of you for the great feedback. I also want to apologize for the format troubles I seem to be having. Even though the story looks fine in preview, when it finally posts, sometimes the returns are in there and sometimes they're not. If it was at least consistent, it wouldn't be so incredibly frustrating. Doubly frustrating is that I've never had this problem with my other work. Anyway, I've tried importing the chapters as plain text and in html and I'm still having these problems. I'm trying something else this time, if it doesn't work then this chapter might disappear for a day while I re-do it. Thanks for your patience.
Part 9
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA
1710 Local
Kate stared at him. When it became obvious he wasn't going to say anything else, she asked, "This isn't the first time she's had to shoot someone, is it?" Having to kill anyone could be damned traumatic and the first time was always the worst. Considering the Colonel's record, it seemed unlikely but you never knew.
He looked over at her for a few seconds and then shook his head, "It isn't that, well... not entirely, anyway. We both had a history with Sadik - Mac's was quite a bit nastier. We screwed up his plans but he got away. I told her back then that we'd see him again because he would probably try to kill us." Harm frowned, "She kept telling me that she thought he was here and I kept dismissing it - even after the car battery blew up in my face. It wasn't until that night when Mac stopped by to warn me that I finally believed." He suddenly thumped a fist on his leg, making Kate jump, "Dammit, I got complacent! I know better!"
"This wasn't your fault," Kate pointed out. No wonder Gibbs and Rabb clashed. They were a lot alike, although Gibbs had the JAG lawyer beat in the abrasive department.
"I should have been there to back her up. Mac shouldn't have had to do this alone." He felt guilty as hell about it.
"That's the way Sadik wanted it. Either he'd have picked another time to get to her or he'd have killed you." Kate leaned back, feeling slightly exasperated. "How do you think Mac would have felt about that?" Men could be so goddamn oblivious sometimes. Rabb and MacKenzie obviously cared about each other. Kate wasn't sure what kind of relationship they had going - she didn't know Mac well enough yet to ask those kinds of questions.
Harm scowled, staring at the floor between his feet. It had already occurred to him that Sadik could have easily placed a real bomb in his car instead of just tampering with the battery. That had been one of his primary reasons for not believing the battery explosion was anything but an accident. He had expected the man to try and kill him. It still didn't make it any easier to accept what Mac had had to go through. Finally he looked back up at Kate, "Why are you here?"
She stared at him in surprise, mentally revising his standing in the abrasive competition. "What?"
"Why are you here? You barely know Mac. Is she going to have trouble with NCIS?" Harm leveled a hard glare at the agent. He hadn't been able to protect Mac from Sadik but he would do his best to keep NCIS off her back.
Kate took a deep breath and stood up, "As far as I know, Mac's not in any trouble. For pity's sake, she took out a dangerous terrorist, I think she should get a damn medal." She turned away from him and folded her arms, staring at one of Sturgis's photos of a submarine coming into port. After a few seconds, she said, "Maybe I have only known the Colonel for a few weeks but I like to think we're becoming friends." Kate turned back and leveled her own angry glare at Harm, "You've got some nerve, mister. Mac told me she was concerned about Sadik and I didn't blow it off. I've been chasing down leads on his whereabouts ever since."
Harm held up his hands, "All right, all right, I'm sorry." He shook his head, "I'm just worried. I shouldn't be taking it out on you."
"No you shouldn't," Kate agreed. She sat back down again and they both looked over at Mac's office. "What do you suppose is going on in there?"
Harm shrugged, "With Emma, it's hard to tell. Either she's offering Mac a shoulder to cry on or... she's slapping that pigheaded Marine upside the head for trying to deal with everything on her own." The two grinned at each other at the thought and then settled down to wait.
---------
Emma held on and let the younger woman cry. She was more than a little shocked and needed some time to regroup herself. This was the first time she'd ever seen Sarah cry. Murmuring soothing inanities, she considered what Sarah had told her. No matter what the young woman said, Emma had a hard time believing that whatever she had done could be considered murder. Unlike a number of her peers, Emma held the belief that some people really did deserve to die. She'd seen enough over the years, and heard enough from James, to acknowledge that there were those out there who truly earned the right to be called evil. Permanently removing such people from society didn't fill her with outrage. The hubris of the human race had never failed to amaze her. How could you justify such a smug superiority about your own species when members of it regularly committed premeditated and incredibly heinous acts? The same people who would kill a dog for biting someone would turn right around and scream that executing a man who tortured and murdered children was cruel and unusual.
Emma noticed that Sarah finally seemed to be winding down. She opened her embrace a bit and smiled, "Feel a little better?" Mac nodded and Emma guided her to one of the chairs in front of her desk while she took the other, "Come sit down, dear. I don't know about you but crying always wears me out." She reached for her purse and pulled out some Kleenex, "Here, dab your eyes and gather your thoughts. I want to know what happened."
"Emma, a lot of it is probably classified," Mac began wearily. Dammit, she truly hated that word.
"Sarah," Emma stated firmly, "I don't care about names or what exactly you were supposed to be doing. I'm concerned about you. Are you sorry this man is dead?"
"No!" Mac straightened up, "God no, Emma. The man was a vicious killer."
"So what happened? You saw him on the street and ran over him with your car?"
Mac ran a hand through her hair, "No... " She couldn't help the wry grin as she absently rubbed her sore shoulder, "Although, in hindsight, it might have saved on the wear and tear. I'm getting too old for this." She acknowledged Emma's soft snort with a raised eyebrow and then continued, "He'd been stalking me, so I went to the CIA and we arranged to trap him. Things went sour and he pulled out a gun. I knocked it away, we fought, I came up with it while he pulled out a second gun and then I shot him. Twice."
Emma frowned, "Sarah, that sounds like self-defense." Years of presenting a calm facade to the world was coming in handy, it boggled her mind that Sarah could speak so matter-of-factly of something so inherently terrifying.
"It wasn't," Mac looked grim, "I disarmed him with my first shot. I put the second bullet in his head. He wasn't a threat anymore but I killed him anyway." She looked down at the floor, "The CIA report glossed over that part which is probably why Kate hasn't had to arrest me."
Emma looked at Mac for a several long seconds, "So what's truly bothering you about this? You're not sorry he's dead, and frankly, I don't believe I am either." She smiled at the slightly shocked expression on Sarah's face, "What? That surprises you? Kate said he was a terrorist. You've called him a sadistic bastard and vicious killer. I know you well enough to believe in your judgment. I think you've saved countless lives, including your own. What's wrong with that?"
"Emma! I've been an attorney nearly half my life. I'm an officer of the court. I've sworn to uphold the law and I failed! I killed that man! There was no trial, no evidence presented - I made myself judge, jury and executioner. I'm no better than he was. How the hell do I live with myself?"
Emma stared at her thoughtfully. It seemed ludicrous that Sarah would even begin to compare herself to a terrorist. Understandable but ludicrous. From their talk earlier, it was apparent to the older woman that Sarah was already on fragile emotional ground. This had been incredibly bad timing. "It seems to me that you were fulfilling your oath as a military officer. Aren't you supposed to defend America's citizens?"
"Yes, but... "
"Yes, nothing." Emma interrupted her forcefully. "Heavens above, Sarah, give yourself some credit. Can you honestly sit there and tell me that you're absolutely positive that that man was no longer a threat?"
"Well, no... "
"Then let it go, Sarah. It's over and done. I don't know what your history was with this man but I trust your instincts. No matter whether you think it was motivated by anger or vengeance, I believe you knew in your gut that killing that man was the only way to stop him with any certainty. Sometimes it's the only way. Let it go."
Mac stared at her and then slowly nodded. She could understand Emma's point of view but the older woman hadn't been the one to pull the trigger. The fact that Clay had said basically the same thing as Emma didn't really change anything. Just because Sadik deserved death didn't make it right for her to have done it. However, Emma was right - done was done. She could do one thing, however, Mac made a quiet resolution: this would not happen again.
Three days later
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA
1800 Local
Mac had just secured her office when she heard Harm's welcome voice behind her, "Done for the day?"
She turned around and gave him a smile, "Yeah, you?" He'd outdone himself these past few days in being there for her. He hadn't pushed, letting her tell him everything at her own pace. Contrary to her worst fears, Harm hadn't been judgmental. If anything, he had sided with Emma and Clay. Faced with 3 people whose opinions she valued, Mac had shoved her fears aside and made a determined effort to return to some semblance of normal.
"All finished." He flashed her a brilliant grin and then adopted a comically thick Southern accent, drawling the words out slowly, "Would the lil' lady cah-uh tuh pahtake inah dee-lectably exquisite meal with a dashin' n hansum man of the sea?" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Mac chuckled, he sounded like Foghorn Leghorn. She assumed a coy look, dropping her head and looking at him from under her eyelashes, "Why suh, mah momma dun warned me 'bout scoundrels such as yo'self. How do Ah know ewe aren't some rascally pirate intent on having yo' way with me?"
"Ewe wound me, madam," Harm lowered his voice and took on a pitiful tone as he walked her towards the elevator. They were the last two out of the bullpen. "Ah would soonah be hung from the highest yardarm thin disgrace mah proud family name. Ah ah-sure ewe, ewe are puf-fectly safe."
Mac pushed the elevator button and turned back towards him, fluttering her eyelashes, "In that case, suh... " When she heard the elevator doors open, she turned and sauntered slowly in. Pivoting around to face him, she gave him a sultry stare and then planted her fists on her hips, "... forget it. I had my heart set on being ravaged!" She grinned broadly at the look on Harm's face as the elevator doors shut. She'd frozen him to the spot.
As the elevator started to move, she calculated the time it would take her sailor with his longs legs to make it to the ground floor and smiled. Considering the motivation, it would probably be a dead heat. Straightening up as the elevator came to a halt, she dropped back into her professional mode. Their game would have to wait until they cleared the JAG grounds. She congratulated herself when the doors opened to reveal Harm waiting with a calm nonchalance. He too, had resumed his professional demeanor. Falling in beside her, he glanced down, "How about splitting a pizza?"
"Sounds good." Together, they exited the building.
Reaching their cars, Harm looked over at her, "Your place or mine?"
Mac hesitated for just a moment, Mattie had taken to popping in unexpectedly. She was always apologetic and she always had a reason but it didn't take a genius to figure out what she was doing. Harm found it annoying but had yet to make the connection. Genius was the wrong word, Mac amended to herself, what it took was another woman. That was the problem, of course. In Mattie's eyes, Mac had become the Other Woman.
"Mac?"
She flashed him a quick smile. It was nice of him to offer but there really wasn't much of a choice. There was Mattie to think of and it was a school night. "How about your place?"
"Sure," he agreed affably. "Let me call in the order and then I'll follow you." Mac nodded and he waited for her to get into her car before getting in himself. With a certain amount of trepidation, he turned the key and then smiled sheepishly to himself when the motor purred to life. How long would it take before he quit holding his breath whenever he started the Corvette? Damn, what did Mac think every time she opened the door to her apartment? She'd told him about Sadik's intrusion and the 'gifts' he'd left. Was that why she zoned out for a minute when he asked her whose place they were going? Would she tell him if he asked? Mac had been remarkably open (by her standards, anyway) about what she'd been going through after Emma's intervention. He didn't want to undo all the good by pushing for something she might not be ready to talk about.
There was something else going on too, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. If he hadn't known her so well, he might have missed it altogether. He couldn't even put a name to it, there was just a faint... dissonance, a stray scent on the breeze. Harm shook his head as he pulled out his cell phone, it was also quite possible he was imagining it.
Harm's Apartment
North of Union Station
2035 Local
Mac leaned back on the couch and closed her eyes. Harm and Mattie had their heads together over at the dining room table. Homework - physics, to be exact - was the excuse du jour tonight. She gave the teenager points for strategy. Complaining about Harm's lack of attention would have sounded petulant even to her ears. However, that was all Mac was willing to give the young woman - the time was fast approaching for a 'Come to Jesus' meeting between the two of them. She and Harm had overcome too much to get knocked off-course by a jealous teen. The only random factor would be Harm. He was so good at assuming guilt that he might feel obligated to defend his ward. That was a worst-case scenario and she wasn't altogether sure she would be up to a full-fledged battle royale.
Her cellphone went off, which earned her a reproachful look from Mattie and a curious one from Harm. Mac gave him a shrug as she dug it out of her purse and flipped it open, "Hello?"
"Mac? It's Kate. We've got another one." Frustration was evident in her voice.
"You're kidding." Mac toted up the time since the last victim was found. Fifteen days, so Hilliard wasn't a fluke - this guy was escalating, but why? "Same M.O.?"
"Well, I haven't done a background check yet, but it's another Marine sergeant shot at close range." Kate glanced over at the scene as Ducky supervised the removal of the body. Tony was busily snapping photos, she needed to get back over there to start looking for trace. Gibbs would probably have a fit if he knew to whom she was talking. "If it is our guy, we might have caught a break. Ducky doesn't think the victim's been dead for more than 2 hours. Could you do me a favor and see if he's in the JAG system?"
"Sure, give me a second to grab a pen," she rummaged through her purse and pulled out her dayplanner. "Okay, go." She wrote quickly as Kate read off the information from the Sergeant's wallet, "Got it, I'll let you know." Ending the call, she glanced up to find Harm and Mattie watching her. "Sorry, was I disturbing you?"
Mattie started to hmph but a raised eyebrow from Harm made her subside. He looked back over at Mac, "Something wrong?"
Mac gave Mattie a quick glance before shrugging a little. This wasn't something the teenager really needed to hear, "Sort of... that was Kate. There's been another." Fortunately, Harm was familiar enough with Kate's investigation that she didn't need to elaborate. Mac got up from the couch and waved her hand at them, "Go back to what you were doing. I just need to make some phone calls."
Harm frowned, "Mac... "
"Harm...," Mac replied, rolling her eyes just a little. Mattie watched them with a slightly confused expression. She hadn't seen them together enough to pick up on their verbal shorthand.
Mac continued,"Go ahead and finish with Mattie. This shouldn't take too long." She moved to the window, out of earshot, and punched in the JAG number. Relaying her request to the officer on duty, she hung up and went back to the couch to wait for a response. Harm and Mattie once again had their heads together and Mac sighed, this wasn't the evening she had hoped for. Six minutes and forty-two seconds later, her cell phone went off again. Snatching it up, she moved to the window again. She listened as the Lieutenant read off the information he'd found. It took him a few minutes and she came to a decision while he was speaking. Sergeant Alvaro had a pretty extensive JAG file. This was the third time he'd made it back to Sergeant. Really, it was too much to relay to Kate over the phone. Thanking Lieutenant O'Dowd, she ended the call and walked back to the dining table.
"Harm, I'm sorry but I need to get going."
"What? Why?" Harm stared at her in frustration. All he'd wanted was a quiet evening together. He hadn't figured on Mattie needing so much help with her physics but he was almost done.
"I need to run by JAG and then see Kate. It's not that big a deal. I'd have been heading out in an hour or so anyway."
Harm glanced at his watch in surprise, "Oh damn... I didn't realize it was that late." He followed her as she collected her coat and purse and moved to the front door, "I'm sorry about this." He put a hand on her arm and rubbed gently, "This evening didn't turn out exactly the way I'd wanted."
Mac gave him a slight smile while refraining from looking over at Mattie. "Maybe we should try this when it isn't a school night." She cocked an eyebrow at him, "How about Friday?"
"Sounds good," Harm smiled too, relieved Mac wasn't angry with him. He'd have to make it up to her. God knew that Renee would have had a screaming fit if he had ignored her in favor of helping Mattie with her homework. He grabbed his coat, "Let me walk you down." Escorting Mac out the door, he called over his shoulder, "Mattie, I'll be right back."
He took advantage of the elevator ride down to kiss her and felt doubly relieved when she returned it without hesitation. Walking Mac to her car, he closed the door for her after she climbed in and then leaned in for another quick kiss, "Be careful."
Mac smiled up at him, "Always."
Harm hesitated for a moment and then said cautiously, "Remember this isn't your case."
"I know that," she wasn't smiling now.
He took a breath, "I'm just saying that you should follow Kate's lead. You know how you feel when someone starts crowding your investigations."
Mac was silent for a moment, indignation warring with common sense. He had a point. "You're right," she finally agreed. "I promise I won't make a pest of myself, okay?"
"Okay. I guess I'll see you tomorrow. 'Night." He watched her drive off and then went slowly back up the apartment. He had the uneasy feeling that Kate Todd would consider Mac more of an asset than a pest.
Part 9
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA
1710 Local
Kate stared at him. When it became obvious he wasn't going to say anything else, she asked, "This isn't the first time she's had to shoot someone, is it?" Having to kill anyone could be damned traumatic and the first time was always the worst. Considering the Colonel's record, it seemed unlikely but you never knew.
He looked over at her for a few seconds and then shook his head, "It isn't that, well... not entirely, anyway. We both had a history with Sadik - Mac's was quite a bit nastier. We screwed up his plans but he got away. I told her back then that we'd see him again because he would probably try to kill us." Harm frowned, "She kept telling me that she thought he was here and I kept dismissing it - even after the car battery blew up in my face. It wasn't until that night when Mac stopped by to warn me that I finally believed." He suddenly thumped a fist on his leg, making Kate jump, "Dammit, I got complacent! I know better!"
"This wasn't your fault," Kate pointed out. No wonder Gibbs and Rabb clashed. They were a lot alike, although Gibbs had the JAG lawyer beat in the abrasive department.
"I should have been there to back her up. Mac shouldn't have had to do this alone." He felt guilty as hell about it.
"That's the way Sadik wanted it. Either he'd have picked another time to get to her or he'd have killed you." Kate leaned back, feeling slightly exasperated. "How do you think Mac would have felt about that?" Men could be so goddamn oblivious sometimes. Rabb and MacKenzie obviously cared about each other. Kate wasn't sure what kind of relationship they had going - she didn't know Mac well enough yet to ask those kinds of questions.
Harm scowled, staring at the floor between his feet. It had already occurred to him that Sadik could have easily placed a real bomb in his car instead of just tampering with the battery. That had been one of his primary reasons for not believing the battery explosion was anything but an accident. He had expected the man to try and kill him. It still didn't make it any easier to accept what Mac had had to go through. Finally he looked back up at Kate, "Why are you here?"
She stared at him in surprise, mentally revising his standing in the abrasive competition. "What?"
"Why are you here? You barely know Mac. Is she going to have trouble with NCIS?" Harm leveled a hard glare at the agent. He hadn't been able to protect Mac from Sadik but he would do his best to keep NCIS off her back.
Kate took a deep breath and stood up, "As far as I know, Mac's not in any trouble. For pity's sake, she took out a dangerous terrorist, I think she should get a damn medal." She turned away from him and folded her arms, staring at one of Sturgis's photos of a submarine coming into port. After a few seconds, she said, "Maybe I have only known the Colonel for a few weeks but I like to think we're becoming friends." Kate turned back and leveled her own angry glare at Harm, "You've got some nerve, mister. Mac told me she was concerned about Sadik and I didn't blow it off. I've been chasing down leads on his whereabouts ever since."
Harm held up his hands, "All right, all right, I'm sorry." He shook his head, "I'm just worried. I shouldn't be taking it out on you."
"No you shouldn't," Kate agreed. She sat back down again and they both looked over at Mac's office. "What do you suppose is going on in there?"
Harm shrugged, "With Emma, it's hard to tell. Either she's offering Mac a shoulder to cry on or... she's slapping that pigheaded Marine upside the head for trying to deal with everything on her own." The two grinned at each other at the thought and then settled down to wait.
---------
Emma held on and let the younger woman cry. She was more than a little shocked and needed some time to regroup herself. This was the first time she'd ever seen Sarah cry. Murmuring soothing inanities, she considered what Sarah had told her. No matter what the young woman said, Emma had a hard time believing that whatever she had done could be considered murder. Unlike a number of her peers, Emma held the belief that some people really did deserve to die. She'd seen enough over the years, and heard enough from James, to acknowledge that there were those out there who truly earned the right to be called evil. Permanently removing such people from society didn't fill her with outrage. The hubris of the human race had never failed to amaze her. How could you justify such a smug superiority about your own species when members of it regularly committed premeditated and incredibly heinous acts? The same people who would kill a dog for biting someone would turn right around and scream that executing a man who tortured and murdered children was cruel and unusual.
Emma noticed that Sarah finally seemed to be winding down. She opened her embrace a bit and smiled, "Feel a little better?" Mac nodded and Emma guided her to one of the chairs in front of her desk while she took the other, "Come sit down, dear. I don't know about you but crying always wears me out." She reached for her purse and pulled out some Kleenex, "Here, dab your eyes and gather your thoughts. I want to know what happened."
"Emma, a lot of it is probably classified," Mac began wearily. Dammit, she truly hated that word.
"Sarah," Emma stated firmly, "I don't care about names or what exactly you were supposed to be doing. I'm concerned about you. Are you sorry this man is dead?"
"No!" Mac straightened up, "God no, Emma. The man was a vicious killer."
"So what happened? You saw him on the street and ran over him with your car?"
Mac ran a hand through her hair, "No... " She couldn't help the wry grin as she absently rubbed her sore shoulder, "Although, in hindsight, it might have saved on the wear and tear. I'm getting too old for this." She acknowledged Emma's soft snort with a raised eyebrow and then continued, "He'd been stalking me, so I went to the CIA and we arranged to trap him. Things went sour and he pulled out a gun. I knocked it away, we fought, I came up with it while he pulled out a second gun and then I shot him. Twice."
Emma frowned, "Sarah, that sounds like self-defense." Years of presenting a calm facade to the world was coming in handy, it boggled her mind that Sarah could speak so matter-of-factly of something so inherently terrifying.
"It wasn't," Mac looked grim, "I disarmed him with my first shot. I put the second bullet in his head. He wasn't a threat anymore but I killed him anyway." She looked down at the floor, "The CIA report glossed over that part which is probably why Kate hasn't had to arrest me."
Emma looked at Mac for a several long seconds, "So what's truly bothering you about this? You're not sorry he's dead, and frankly, I don't believe I am either." She smiled at the slightly shocked expression on Sarah's face, "What? That surprises you? Kate said he was a terrorist. You've called him a sadistic bastard and vicious killer. I know you well enough to believe in your judgment. I think you've saved countless lives, including your own. What's wrong with that?"
"Emma! I've been an attorney nearly half my life. I'm an officer of the court. I've sworn to uphold the law and I failed! I killed that man! There was no trial, no evidence presented - I made myself judge, jury and executioner. I'm no better than he was. How the hell do I live with myself?"
Emma stared at her thoughtfully. It seemed ludicrous that Sarah would even begin to compare herself to a terrorist. Understandable but ludicrous. From their talk earlier, it was apparent to the older woman that Sarah was already on fragile emotional ground. This had been incredibly bad timing. "It seems to me that you were fulfilling your oath as a military officer. Aren't you supposed to defend America's citizens?"
"Yes, but... "
"Yes, nothing." Emma interrupted her forcefully. "Heavens above, Sarah, give yourself some credit. Can you honestly sit there and tell me that you're absolutely positive that that man was no longer a threat?"
"Well, no... "
"Then let it go, Sarah. It's over and done. I don't know what your history was with this man but I trust your instincts. No matter whether you think it was motivated by anger or vengeance, I believe you knew in your gut that killing that man was the only way to stop him with any certainty. Sometimes it's the only way. Let it go."
Mac stared at her and then slowly nodded. She could understand Emma's point of view but the older woman hadn't been the one to pull the trigger. The fact that Clay had said basically the same thing as Emma didn't really change anything. Just because Sadik deserved death didn't make it right for her to have done it. However, Emma was right - done was done. She could do one thing, however, Mac made a quiet resolution: this would not happen again.
Three days later
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA
1800 Local
Mac had just secured her office when she heard Harm's welcome voice behind her, "Done for the day?"
She turned around and gave him a smile, "Yeah, you?" He'd outdone himself these past few days in being there for her. He hadn't pushed, letting her tell him everything at her own pace. Contrary to her worst fears, Harm hadn't been judgmental. If anything, he had sided with Emma and Clay. Faced with 3 people whose opinions she valued, Mac had shoved her fears aside and made a determined effort to return to some semblance of normal.
"All finished." He flashed her a brilliant grin and then adopted a comically thick Southern accent, drawling the words out slowly, "Would the lil' lady cah-uh tuh pahtake inah dee-lectably exquisite meal with a dashin' n hansum man of the sea?" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Mac chuckled, he sounded like Foghorn Leghorn. She assumed a coy look, dropping her head and looking at him from under her eyelashes, "Why suh, mah momma dun warned me 'bout scoundrels such as yo'self. How do Ah know ewe aren't some rascally pirate intent on having yo' way with me?"
"Ewe wound me, madam," Harm lowered his voice and took on a pitiful tone as he walked her towards the elevator. They were the last two out of the bullpen. "Ah would soonah be hung from the highest yardarm thin disgrace mah proud family name. Ah ah-sure ewe, ewe are puf-fectly safe."
Mac pushed the elevator button and turned back towards him, fluttering her eyelashes, "In that case, suh... " When she heard the elevator doors open, she turned and sauntered slowly in. Pivoting around to face him, she gave him a sultry stare and then planted her fists on her hips, "... forget it. I had my heart set on being ravaged!" She grinned broadly at the look on Harm's face as the elevator doors shut. She'd frozen him to the spot.
As the elevator started to move, she calculated the time it would take her sailor with his longs legs to make it to the ground floor and smiled. Considering the motivation, it would probably be a dead heat. Straightening up as the elevator came to a halt, she dropped back into her professional mode. Their game would have to wait until they cleared the JAG grounds. She congratulated herself when the doors opened to reveal Harm waiting with a calm nonchalance. He too, had resumed his professional demeanor. Falling in beside her, he glanced down, "How about splitting a pizza?"
"Sounds good." Together, they exited the building.
Reaching their cars, Harm looked over at her, "Your place or mine?"
Mac hesitated for just a moment, Mattie had taken to popping in unexpectedly. She was always apologetic and she always had a reason but it didn't take a genius to figure out what she was doing. Harm found it annoying but had yet to make the connection. Genius was the wrong word, Mac amended to herself, what it took was another woman. That was the problem, of course. In Mattie's eyes, Mac had become the Other Woman.
"Mac?"
She flashed him a quick smile. It was nice of him to offer but there really wasn't much of a choice. There was Mattie to think of and it was a school night. "How about your place?"
"Sure," he agreed affably. "Let me call in the order and then I'll follow you." Mac nodded and he waited for her to get into her car before getting in himself. With a certain amount of trepidation, he turned the key and then smiled sheepishly to himself when the motor purred to life. How long would it take before he quit holding his breath whenever he started the Corvette? Damn, what did Mac think every time she opened the door to her apartment? She'd told him about Sadik's intrusion and the 'gifts' he'd left. Was that why she zoned out for a minute when he asked her whose place they were going? Would she tell him if he asked? Mac had been remarkably open (by her standards, anyway) about what she'd been going through after Emma's intervention. He didn't want to undo all the good by pushing for something she might not be ready to talk about.
There was something else going on too, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. If he hadn't known her so well, he might have missed it altogether. He couldn't even put a name to it, there was just a faint... dissonance, a stray scent on the breeze. Harm shook his head as he pulled out his cell phone, it was also quite possible he was imagining it.
Harm's Apartment
North of Union Station
2035 Local
Mac leaned back on the couch and closed her eyes. Harm and Mattie had their heads together over at the dining room table. Homework - physics, to be exact - was the excuse du jour tonight. She gave the teenager points for strategy. Complaining about Harm's lack of attention would have sounded petulant even to her ears. However, that was all Mac was willing to give the young woman - the time was fast approaching for a 'Come to Jesus' meeting between the two of them. She and Harm had overcome too much to get knocked off-course by a jealous teen. The only random factor would be Harm. He was so good at assuming guilt that he might feel obligated to defend his ward. That was a worst-case scenario and she wasn't altogether sure she would be up to a full-fledged battle royale.
Her cellphone went off, which earned her a reproachful look from Mattie and a curious one from Harm. Mac gave him a shrug as she dug it out of her purse and flipped it open, "Hello?"
"Mac? It's Kate. We've got another one." Frustration was evident in her voice.
"You're kidding." Mac toted up the time since the last victim was found. Fifteen days, so Hilliard wasn't a fluke - this guy was escalating, but why? "Same M.O.?"
"Well, I haven't done a background check yet, but it's another Marine sergeant shot at close range." Kate glanced over at the scene as Ducky supervised the removal of the body. Tony was busily snapping photos, she needed to get back over there to start looking for trace. Gibbs would probably have a fit if he knew to whom she was talking. "If it is our guy, we might have caught a break. Ducky doesn't think the victim's been dead for more than 2 hours. Could you do me a favor and see if he's in the JAG system?"
"Sure, give me a second to grab a pen," she rummaged through her purse and pulled out her dayplanner. "Okay, go." She wrote quickly as Kate read off the information from the Sergeant's wallet, "Got it, I'll let you know." Ending the call, she glanced up to find Harm and Mattie watching her. "Sorry, was I disturbing you?"
Mattie started to hmph but a raised eyebrow from Harm made her subside. He looked back over at Mac, "Something wrong?"
Mac gave Mattie a quick glance before shrugging a little. This wasn't something the teenager really needed to hear, "Sort of... that was Kate. There's been another." Fortunately, Harm was familiar enough with Kate's investigation that she didn't need to elaborate. Mac got up from the couch and waved her hand at them, "Go back to what you were doing. I just need to make some phone calls."
Harm frowned, "Mac... "
"Harm...," Mac replied, rolling her eyes just a little. Mattie watched them with a slightly confused expression. She hadn't seen them together enough to pick up on their verbal shorthand.
Mac continued,"Go ahead and finish with Mattie. This shouldn't take too long." She moved to the window, out of earshot, and punched in the JAG number. Relaying her request to the officer on duty, she hung up and went back to the couch to wait for a response. Harm and Mattie once again had their heads together and Mac sighed, this wasn't the evening she had hoped for. Six minutes and forty-two seconds later, her cell phone went off again. Snatching it up, she moved to the window again. She listened as the Lieutenant read off the information he'd found. It took him a few minutes and she came to a decision while he was speaking. Sergeant Alvaro had a pretty extensive JAG file. This was the third time he'd made it back to Sergeant. Really, it was too much to relay to Kate over the phone. Thanking Lieutenant O'Dowd, she ended the call and walked back to the dining table.
"Harm, I'm sorry but I need to get going."
"What? Why?" Harm stared at her in frustration. All he'd wanted was a quiet evening together. He hadn't figured on Mattie needing so much help with her physics but he was almost done.
"I need to run by JAG and then see Kate. It's not that big a deal. I'd have been heading out in an hour or so anyway."
Harm glanced at his watch in surprise, "Oh damn... I didn't realize it was that late." He followed her as she collected her coat and purse and moved to the front door, "I'm sorry about this." He put a hand on her arm and rubbed gently, "This evening didn't turn out exactly the way I'd wanted."
Mac gave him a slight smile while refraining from looking over at Mattie. "Maybe we should try this when it isn't a school night." She cocked an eyebrow at him, "How about Friday?"
"Sounds good," Harm smiled too, relieved Mac wasn't angry with him. He'd have to make it up to her. God knew that Renee would have had a screaming fit if he had ignored her in favor of helping Mattie with her homework. He grabbed his coat, "Let me walk you down." Escorting Mac out the door, he called over his shoulder, "Mattie, I'll be right back."
He took advantage of the elevator ride down to kiss her and felt doubly relieved when she returned it without hesitation. Walking Mac to her car, he closed the door for her after she climbed in and then leaned in for another quick kiss, "Be careful."
Mac smiled up at him, "Always."
Harm hesitated for a moment and then said cautiously, "Remember this isn't your case."
"I know that," she wasn't smiling now.
He took a breath, "I'm just saying that you should follow Kate's lead. You know how you feel when someone starts crowding your investigations."
Mac was silent for a moment, indignation warring with common sense. He had a point. "You're right," she finally agreed. "I promise I won't make a pest of myself, okay?"
"Okay. I guess I'll see you tomorrow. 'Night." He watched her drive off and then went slowly back up the apartment. He had the uneasy feeling that Kate Todd would consider Mac more of an asset than a pest.
