Sorry for the delay, I was out of town for a fencing meet - which I tanked. Darn it. As penance, Part 23 will follow shortly.

Part 22

Holiday Inn Jacksonville, NC 1130 Local

Walters walked down the corridor until he found the number he was looking for. Glancing in both directions, he knocked quietly and waited. After a few moments, the door opened revealing Commander Rabb. He watched Harm scan the hallway as well before stepping back and inviting him in. Dubby walked into the room and stopped short. Special Agent Gibbs was sitting propped up against the pillows on a bed. His shirt was off and the bandage on his shoulder clearly visible. His eyes were closed and he looked like hell. Walters turned back towards Harm, "Tell me you didn't shoot him."

Harm smiled ruefully, "I won't deny the thought hasn't crossed my mind but no, he was like this when we started."

Gibbs opened his eyes, "You know I can hear you two."

Walters turned back towards the agent, "Fine, then you'll hear when I say this: You're a damn fool coming down here in this condition. We'll have to divide our attention to keep an eye on you as well as Sarah and Kate. What the hell were you thinking?"

Harm braced himself, waiting for the inevitable explosion of temper. Had Dubby lost his mind? The Gunny was right, of course, and it wasn't something that Harm hadn't thought of himself. He just wasn't so foolish as to provoke Gibbs when it was obvious that nothing would change. To his surprise, Gibbs merely frowned, "Kate's one of mine, Gunny. Where else would you expect me to be?"

Dubby grunted thoughtfully and folded his arms, "Doesn't get around the fact that you're a liability right now."

"I won't be when the time comes." Gibbs said it with such conviction that Harm halfway believed him.

Walters looked at him for another moment and then nodded, "Okay." He glanced over at Harm, "Have you called the Colonel yet? We need to coordinate."

Harm studied his feet briefly before shooting a quick look at Gibbs. On this one point, they were entirely in agreement, "Ahhh, Gunny... We thought we might just stay in the background for a little while. If their killer is down here, we wouldn't want to spook him."

Gunny looked from Harm to Gibbs and back. He shook his head, "Gentlemen, your strategy is sound but your tactics are wrong." He pointed a finger at Harm, "It's a mistake not to let Kate and Sarah know you're here. Keeping a low profile is fine but hiding from the lead investigators just tells them you don't trust 'em. Is that the message you want the Colonel to get?" He turned and glared at Gibbs, "Or Agent Todd?"

"No, of course not!" Harm's eyes widened slightly in alarm. The last thing he wanted to do was piss Mac off. Unfortunately, with his reputation for riding to rescue, he didn't think there was any way around it.

Gunny was implacable, "Then call her and find out what she and Kate want you two to do."

"I don't think that will be anatomically possible." Harm muttered, pulling out his cell phone.

Clawson's Restaurant Beaufort, NC 1142 Local

Mac shook her head, looking at Kate and laughing, "So Gibbs stuffed Tony into a bodybag and gave him to the FIBBies? What did they do when they found out?"

Kate chuckled, "Kicked him out on the road, bodybag and all. I think they stopped the car first but I'm not sure."

"How did they find out he wasn't the real body?" Mike was grinning widely.

"His cellphone went off and he answered it." The NCIS agent smiled and then attempted to look serious, "I'm pretty sure that's what gave it away."

Mac's cellphone rang just then. Apologizing to the others, she pulled it out and checked the ID. She looked up at Kate and Mike, "Would you two excuse me for a moment? I need to take this." She stood up and moved away from the table.

Mike shot an amused glance at Kate, "Ten to one, that would be Commander Fantastic. He had most of the women and a few of the men drooling over him at the barbecue." She looked over towards Mac, "She's a lucky woman." Kate nodded in agreement.

"Harm, hey, missed you last night," Mac kept her back towards Kate and Elbert. They didn't need to see the silly smile on her face. "How're you doing? The Admiral keeping you hopping at JAG?"

Harm rolled his eyes and turned his back on Walters and Gibbs, "Umm, about that... now don't be mad..."

Mac stiffened slightly. "Why would I be mad, Harm?" she asked carefully. What the hell had he done? She inhaled sharply, no... he wouldn't have. Mac lowered her voice, mindful of where she was, "Oh god, tell me you didn't blow off Chegwidden. Not for this..."

"No, no," Harm answered hastily. She hadn't exploded yet and he needed to take advantage of the slim window of opportunity. He lowered his voice, "Gibbs came to see me yesterday at JAG. He wanted to go to North Carolina and he wanted me to go with him."

"Gibbs?" Mac's surprise outweighed her anger, "Harm, he's still supposed to be in the hospital." She paused for a moment, "Where are you?"

Harm took a quick look over his shoulder. Gibbs' eyes were closed again and Dubby was looking out the window on the other side of the room, patently ignoring him. "We're in a Holiday Inn in Jacksonville. We got in this morning."

Mac stared at her phone in amazement and then put it back to her ear, "You and Gibbs? You drove all night? For the love of God, are you out of your mind?"

"Gibbs insisted. I didn't have that much choice, Mac. You know what he's like." Harm rubbed his forehead, hoping that didn't sound as whiny as he thought it did.

"I know what he's normally like," Mac snorted. "I have no idea what he's like when he's apparently taken leave of his senses. We're looking at murders that are three and four years old, not stalking Al-Qaeda cells. There's no emergency, nothing urgent going on. This is crazy." She glanced over her shoulder and half-smiled at Kate and Mike. "He didn't tell Kate he was coming either... she thinks he's still in hospital. Good grief, Harm, why did you let him talk you into this?"

Harm braced a shoulder against the wall, relief that Mac hadn't gone ballistic warring with the indignation that she thought Gibbs could bully him into anything. "You didn't see him, Mac. He's convinced something's going to happen down here and soon. It was... erie. Hell, it reminded me of the stuff you do sometimes." He scrubbed a hand through his hair, lowering his voice still more, "Scared the spit out of me, it was like he was confirming my worst nightmares. When he squared my leaving with the Admiral, I didn't think twice." Harm took a deep breath, "So go ahead and yell if you want. I'm not sorry." There was a silence long enough to make him check the battery level on his phone, "Mac? You still there?"

"Yeah." She was so quiet that he had to strain to hear her. Harm couldn't help the prickle of worry. She was upset? He almost preferred to have her yelling at him. He knew how to deal with that. He wished vainly that he could be with her right now. That he could hold her and help her fight off the demons. They had both taken a pounding this past year, physically and emotionally, and there'd been a toll. Mac's resiliency had been a constant in his life these last nine years, like the sun coming up each morning. That it had been damaged had been a shock to his system as well as to hers.

"Are you okay?" Damn stupid question when it was obvious that she wasn't.

"Yeah." Patented MacKenzie answer. Patented Rabb answer too, for that matter. They were both too stoic for their own good.

He considered her reply for a moment. "Are you contemplating fiendishly Marine-like ways to kill me?"

There was a hint of a smile in her voice, "No."

Harm relaxed a little, a small smile working its way into his voice, "But if you could reach through the phone right now, you'd probably rap me on the head?"

"Oh yeah." She was beginning to sound more like herself. There was an exasperated fondness in her voice that he knew was reserved especially for him.

"Should I be worried when I finally see you?"

Mac felt the tension in her shoulders ease. Bless him for being there for her. They were still learning to lean on each other, an infinitely slow and difficult process for both. "That would depend entirely upon your stamina, Commander." Mac smiled to herself when she heard him stutter and then start coughing. Apparently, he missed her as much as she missed him. She shook her head in silent amusement, apart for two days and they both needed cold showers. What was the world coming to?

Mac cleared her throat, it was time to bring this back to a more professional level. Their current conversation definitely needed more privacy than was available to either of them. "The Admiral let you come down here?" She was having a hard time grasping that. This was one case where she truly needed Harm's strength and support and she'd been positive that it would be impossible. Chegwidden had been livid about her participation, Harm joining in was out of the question. She hadn't wanted him taking any more hits with his career because of her. She could barely handle the guilt from the first time.

"Yeah," Harm was grateful to turn the conversation towards safer topics, "I have no idea what Gibbs told him but it worked."

"He's really worried something's going to happen?" It sounded preposterous. Gibbs was probably half-delirious... and yet, Kate was always talking about his uncanny knack for seeing what everyone else missed.

"Yeah, like I said, it's spooky," Harm thought for a moment, "You know what? It might be a good idea if no one else knows we're down here." He glanced over his shoulder at Gibbs, "Not to mention being safer for everyone."

Mac frowned slightly, "How bad is he, Harm?" Kate was going to have a fit when she found out.

Harm sighed, "He probably should be in a hospital but that's not going to happen. Hopefully, I can get him to stay in bed today and that should help. Can you and Kate come out? Dubby's here already, I called him earlier."

"Did you?" Mac raised an eyebrow, "Doing some reconnaissance before you called?"

Harm chuckled, "I thought that was what I was doing but Gunny had other ideas. He came here and lectured us both on the importance of not being stupid."

Mac laughed quietly, "Did it work?"

"Time will tell."

Mac looked over her shoulder, "I've got to go, Harm, my lunch just arrived. I'll talk to Kate and then we'll come up later this afternoon." Her tone turned mischievous, "Do you want a heads-up so you can hide the body?"

"Hell no," Harm snorted, "If Kate's going to ream Gibbs, I want a ringside seat." His voice turned softer, "See you in a couple, Marine."

"Bye, Navy." Mac returned to the table and smiled apologetically, "Sorry about that."

Mike folded her arms and looked at Kate, "I don't think she's sorry at all."

Kate eyed the Marine who was now blushing slightly, "I believe you're right. Sorry is not the word I would use right now." She grinned, "How is Commander Tall, Dark & Spoken For?"

"Kate!" Mac looked at the two women who were now laughing and gave up, chuckling too, "He's fine. Thank you very much."

"Everything okay up at JAG?" Mike asked as she added hot sauce to her shrimp burger.

"Um, yeah. He's handling the Murray case for me and he couldn't find the notes."

Kate gave her an innocent look, "On your desk? Imagine that." The NCIS agent looked over at Elbert, "Mac's office is a working model for the Chaos Theory."

"Hey, I can find everything just fine, thank you. It only looks disorganized." Mac put on an indignant expression.

"It looks like a paper bomb went off in there." Kate countered, spearing a clam fritter.

Mac took a bite of her stuffed flounder, "Are you done picking on me?" She took a swig of her iced tea and grinned, "Because I think we should pick on Mike."

"Hey!" Mike drew herself up, "You can't do that. I'm an esteemed member of Congress. I deserve the utmost respect." She held a serious expression for a few seconds and then started laughing. Elbert shook her head, "Damn, I knew I couldn't get that line out without losing it." She took a big bite out her sandwich and dabbed at the hot sauce that had dribbled down her chin, "Okay, ladies, give it your best shot."

Highway 70 Morehead City, NC 1300 Local

Kate looked over Mac, "Nice bit of work with Elbert." They had dropped her at her office on their way back to Morehead.

Mac sighed, "Too bad we didn't learn anything useful. It must be the politician in her. It's amazing how Mike can talk about herself for an hour and say very little. What do you think about Romblin? Think McGee can find him?"

Kate pulled out her cellphone, "If he's breathing, McGee can find him." She glanced over at Mac, "You just missed the turnoff to Atlantic Beach."

"I know," Mac braced herself. She knew Kate wouldn't really be mad at her but she would be the only one handy at the moment. "We're going to Jacksonville."

"Jacksonville?" Kate looked at her in confusion, "Did Dubby find something?"

Mac shrugged a little, technically that could be true. "Ahh, no." She glanced at Kate, "You know when Harm called me?"

"Yeah?" Kate eyed her suspiciously.

"Well... he wasn't in DC. He was here, in a hotel in Jacksonville."

Kate's eyes widened in surprise and then she scowled, "Oh no, you can let me out right here. Good God, Mac! I can't believe... "

"KATE!" Mac took a deep breath and moderated her voice again, "Kate, he's down here because Gibbs asked him."

"What? How...? Mac, Rabb doesn't even like Gibbs. Why would he go see him in the hospital? And why would Gibbs ask him? If he was going to send somebody, it would have been Tony." Kate was more confused than ever. None of this was making sense. She didn't need Tony's or Harm's help for that matter, in checking out two cold cases. McGee would have been more logical except that he was more useful where he could access the NCIS database.

Mac kept her eyes on the road, "Gibbs isn't in the hospital. He went to see Harm at JAG."

"He what?" Kate's eyebrows lowered ominously. In a quiet voice she asked, "He's down here, isn't he?"

Nodding, Mac cringed inwardly, waiting for the brunette to blow sky-high. To her surprise, Kate didn't say a word, instead turning to stare out the window. Neither of them said anything for the rest of the trip. Forty-five minutes later, Mac pulled into the Holiday Inn parking lot and headed for the room number Harm had given her. She was worried about Kate. The agent still hadn't spoken, merely gotten out of the car and followed along after her.

Mac knocked on the door and a few seconds later, Harm opened it. "Hey Mac, Kate." His smile of greeting died at the impassive look on Todd's face.

Mac put a hand on his arm, "Let's take a walk, Harm. Is Dubby here?"

He shook his head, "He said he'd be back in half an hour." Harm glanced back over his shoulder as he let Mac lead him down the corridor, "What's going on with Kate?"

"I'm not sure," Mac looked clearly worried. "She hasn't said a word since I told her Gibbs was down here."

"Uh-oh."

Kate walked into the room and stared at Gibbs who was still propped up in bed. He didn't look like he was at death's door but it was also obvious that he should have still been in a hospital. He opened his mouth and she held up a hand, "Don't." Kate took a deep breath, "When this case is over, Gibbs, I quit."

He stared at her for a long moment and then looked exasperated, "Kate..."

"Don't 'Kate' me," she glared at him, hurt and anger warring for equal time. "If you didn't trust me on my own, then you should have given this investigation to Tony."

"Maybe I should have." The words were out before he could stop them. The shock he'd felt when she said she was quitting had turned quickly to anger and his mouth had run away with him. Dammit, where was her sense of loyalty?

Kate stared at him wordlessly and then turned away. Going to the window, she folded her arms and stared outside. So that was it. A year of her life apparently wasted. Damn him for not believing in her. Well, she'd show him. She would crack this case and then she would move on. She'd done it before, she could do it again.

Gibbs divided his time between picking at the covers and watching Kate. If that was what she wanted, then fine. This was the thanks he got for teaching her to be a good NCIS agent. In time, she'd have been exceptional. Goddammit, why did women have to take everything so personally? Tony would have let this run right off his back. Of course, Tony was completely wrong for this particular case. There were subtle undertones to this that required a degree of finesse, something that Kate had in abundance. There was also the participation of Col. MacKenzie. He hadn't thought so at the time but Kate's decision to bring her aboard had been the right one. The Colonel was a formidable woman and she'd been yanking DiNozzo's chain from the moment they'd met. He seriously doubted that she would have agreed to work with Tony for any length of time. Probably a good thing, she was quite capable of killing him.

The silence stretched out until it was broken by a soft knock. Harm stuck his head in, "Can we come in?"

Gibbs didn't bother answering while Kate turned with a wan smile, "Sure. We need to go over what we know." She ignored Gibbs. Harm nodded slowly, clearly not comfortable with the tension in the room. He walked in, holding the door for Mac and Gunny Walters.

Kate looked at Mac, "How much have you told them?"

Mac shook her head, "Actually not much. I thought it would be better to do it all at once. We were... ah... catching up on other matters and Dubby just got here." She felt herself blushing slightly.

"Okay," Kate apparently chose to ignore her discomfort. She looked around the room and then focused again on Mac. She was the one that would need the most convincing, "I think our killer is Michelle Elbert."

Mac stared open-mouthed, "Kate... how can you say that?" Beside her, Harm and Walters looked surprised but not necessarily shocked.

"Because I believe it's true. She said it herself, she's been in the vicinity of at least three killings... that we know of." Kate held up a hand when Mac started to argue, "Hear me out." She looked apologetic, "Mac, I had McGee look into any deaths that might have a connection to Elbert. This woman has been surrounded by death for most of her life." She started ticking them off on her fingers, "Three classmates, her parents, Ponder Atkins, the sergeants, and a colleague in the State Senate."

Mac gritted her teeth, "Eddie Ramsey, one poacher, Dalton Lowne, Chris Ragle, PFC John Rodreguiz, Daniel Lattimer, Admiral Jacobs... "

Harm put a hand on her arm, "Mac, stop it."

She shook him off, glaring at Kate, "There's more. Does that put me at the top of the list?"

Kate gazed back, wishing there was some way to make this easier. Aside from Eddie Ramsey, she knew who the others were. It had all been in Mac's file. She kept the tone of her voice quiet and calm, "I'm sorry, Mac, but the difference is that every one of the people I've listed either died 'accidentally' or are just plain missing. I don't want to be right about this but I think I am. She has never offered any sort of alibi and we've haven't run across one person who can definitely say, 'Mike was here with me when the murder occurred.' You've said it yourself, the person who did these killings is taunting us with how clever they are and you heard Mike when I suggested that most people would be more upset to find themselves suspected of murder - 'I'm not most people.'

"She also said she wasn't worried because she didn't do it." Mac pointed out, a little more calmly. Harm had shifted closer, silently offering his support while he listened intently to the two women. She rubbed her neck, rolling her shoulders to try and relieve some of the tension, "Look, answer me one question - why? Why would someone who's attained the level that Mike has, kill anyone? She's a rising power in Congress. She's respected and well-liked by her constituents and she's financially well-off. Why risk all that?" She raised her hands and then dropped them, "Every time I consider Mike as a suspect I run into this. Why would she bother?"

"I don't know," Kate admitted, "but I think we need to confront her. She needs to establish her whereabouts at the times of these murders."

"Wait a minute," Harm broke in, looking slightly alarmed. "Is that wise?" He looked from Kate to Mac, "You keep telling me how smart she is. If she is the killer then you can add diabolical as well. You make her feel cornered and she's liable to do anything." He glanced over at Gibbs for support and cursed inwardly at the impassive expression on the man's face. What the hell had gone on between him and Kate? "I think maybe I should go along."

Kate shook her head, "I don't think that's a good idea. I don't want her to feel cornered. We don't have any solid evidence and we need to get her talking, not clamming up and hauling in her lawyer."

"Why don't I tag along?" Gunny spoke up. "I could follow along at a discreet distance and keep an eye on things. If anything starts looking hinky, I can call in the cavalry."

Harm looked at him, "Then I could go with you."

Walters shook his head, "Commander, it would be better if it was just me. Two of us would be more noticeable and, well, you're not from around here."

"Neither are you," Harm bristled slightly. This was becoming increasingly frustrating.

"Harm," This time Mac put her hand on his arm. Her time with Avis and Corinna had made her a little more adept at hearing what Southerners meant as opposed to what they actually said. "He means you're a Yankee and that it could cause some unnecessary problems. You don't speak the language."

"You're kidding me," Harm stared at her in disbelief.

"No, I'm not." Mac shook her head, "You just proved my point. You heard Gunny's words but you didn't hear what he said. Let him handle this." She gave him a smile and glanced over at Kate, "What you could do is introduce yourself to a Mrs. Charlotte Dixon and turn on the charm. She's Mike's office manager down here and I'll bet she knows quite a bit. That way you won't be far away and Dubby can call you if he needs to."

Harm sighed in resignation. This was probably the best he would be able to do under the circumstances. "Okay, fine." He pointed a finger at the two women, "But you'll both be damn careful, right?" They nodded. No one had said anything about Gibbs' lack of participation and at this point, Harm really didn't care. He would see if he could find out later but the most important thing right now was that he would be close at hand if Mac needed him.

Kate took charge again, "Okay, if that's settled then we need to talk to Mike." She looked over at Mac, "Do you want to call her and set something up?"

Mac nodded and pulled out her cell. Turning her back, she walked to the far side of the room so the others could continue to flesh out the details. She was a bit worried about Kate and Gibbs. Hopefully, she would be able to pry the story out of the agent tonight. Ten minutes later, she finished her call to Elbert and returned to the group. She looked over at Kate, "She's tied up in appointments for the rest of the afternoon. She asked us to meet her at her house at 1300. I told her that would be okay. She gave me directions."