Part 29
Aboard the USCGC Block Island Off the Beaufort Inlet 0020 Local
Harm looked up from the chart he was studying and frowned at Gibbs, "You ought to get some sleep while you can." They were still at the site of the explosion. Elbert had been taken to the hospital in Morehead. As much as he wanted to throttle that woman, he knew there was nothing they could do just yet. It had taken every last ounce of his control not to go after her during her performance earlier this evening. If nothing else it had brought home just how dangerous an opponent they were dealing with. This was a chess game with life or death as the stakes. Elbert had made her opening move with her pretense of being a victim. Harm and Gibbs had countered by convincing the police that a guard was necessary for her 'protection.'
Gibbs gave his head a stubborn shake, "We don't have time." He tapped their current position, "You know they're not here. Elbert was way too anxious for the Coasties to stay and search."
Harm pushed away from the table, running his hands through his hair. Standing up, he half-turned away and rested his hands on his hips, staring at the deck. Gibbs watched him quietly for a few moments, "Go ahead and say it."
The Commander looked up, anguish and rage hidden deep in his eyes, "What if they're already dead? How do we know Elbert didn't shoot them, add weights and throw them overboard somewhere out in the Atlantic?"
"We don't." Gibbs answered simply. Seeing Harm's shoulders slump, he glanced back down at the chart, "But I don't think that's what's happened." He sat quietly for a few seconds, organizing his thoughts, "If Kate was right, then Elbert's been killing people for years. Up until the sergeants, those deaths have always been ruled accidental. I think half the rush for her is going to these elaborate lengths to disguise murder."
"A forensic artist," Harm felt a chill, bringing Palmer to mind.
Gibbs looked surprised, "Yeah, that's one way to put it."
"But she didn't do that with the sergeants." Harm sat back down.
"That was different," Gibbs drummed his fingers on the table. "Those deaths were a 'gift' for Mac."
Harm's eyebrows rose, "You know about Mac's childhood?" He scowled slightly and waved a hand, "Forget I said that, of course you knew." Mac was so tight-lipped about growing up with that bastard of a father that he was always a bit surprised when other people knew. "A gift?"
"Yeah, think about it. Elbert's fixated on the Colonel, probably after that Court-TV circus. She hacks into Mac's CIA file and finds out that they had similar childhoods. She wants to do something to celebrate this bond she thinks they have. Killing is one of her options. I think that if Mac had had a normal childhood, it's possible that the people around her that caused her undue stress would have started disappearing." He paused, "For a while, everything's perfect. She's even managed to meet Mac and arrange to work together. And then Kate shows up and it all goes to hell. Her 'gift' is about to come back and bite her in the ass. Worse, Mac's gone to the other side and is now working against her. So Elbert goes back to what she does best."
"Accidental deaths? That still doesn't make sense. Why go to the trouble when our chances of ever finding the bodies are practically nil?" Harm took a deep breath. It was so hard trying to keep this in the abstract. This was Mac, goddammit!"
Gibbs raised a finger, "But not non-existent. There's no statute of limitations on murder. You'd be surprised how bodies can turn up. These are busy waters. Fishing trawlers, sport fishermen, wreck divers... I think she's assuming their bodies will be found eventually and she wants to make sure the only cause of death will be drowning."
"So she whacks them both over the head and drops them overboard. They drown." Harm couldn't help feeling appalled at the role he'd found himself in. Playing Devil's Advocate for the successful murder of the woman he loved? God help him.
"I don't think so... for two reasons", Gibbs added when it looked like Harm was about to speak again. He tapped a finger on the table, "First, it's entirely possible that hitting them that hard would leave forensic evidence. I don't think she'd take the chance." Gibbs gave Harm a particularly grim look, "Second... I think she wants payback. Kate hunted her and Mac betrayed her. She wants them to die but not too quickly. She wants them to fight for survival and lose. She wants to break them physically and mentally so they can die knowing that they failed."
"Dear God...," Harm breathed softly. Elbert was truly a monster.
Gibbs stared down at the charts, "There's one other thing." He looked up at Harm, "Sharks."
Harm sucked in a breath. Dammit, he'd forgotten the blood on the dock. Kate was hurt.
The two men were silent for several seconds and then Gibbs tapped the charts again. "Come on, Commander, we need to figure out where to look."
Determined, Harm leaned back over the table. There was still a chance. Mac was one of the stubbornest women he'd ever known. They were still alive and he was going to find them. He traced a path back up the Newport River, "So let's start at the beginning. Elbert's place is here. She starts at 1430. It would probably take anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour to clear the Beaufort Inlet. There are no-wake zones and she wouldn't want to appear in a hurry."
Gibbs nodded, "The Gerrymander had a fuel capacity of 76 gallons and a maximum speed of 45 mph. She was out the day before. We'll have to check to see if she refilled. At any rate, she hits open water around 1530. She still doesn't want to attract attention so she's not running full out."
Harm picked up a ruler and pencil, "She wouldn't have dumped them too close to shore. You were right, these are busy waters. The shrimp trawlers and fishing boats are usually within a couple of miles of shore." He marked off an area. "The shipping lanes are out here. I don't think she'd go that far either."
"So it takes her a while to find a good spot without a lot of boats around," Gibbs rubbed his chin. "Sunset was at 7:30 or so. If I was her, I'd wait until dusk. Less likely to see what she's doing if someone happens along. She's back at the Beaufort Inlet by 10:00, the Gerrymander blows up and the Brightons find her at around 10:30."
Harm marked their current position on the chart, "She probably came straight back to this point after throwing them overboard. Figure she was running around 20-25 miles an hour." He checked the scale on the chart and then used the compass to mark a circle. "So they're somewhere within this radius." He looked up at Gibbs, "That's still a pretty big area."
"But it's a start." Gibbs looked at his watch, "Ducky ought to be at Lejeune any time now. Walters will pick him up, right?"
Harm nodded, "He'll call when he's on his way back." He rested his hands on the table, "If we're going to convince the Captain to change his search area, we need to get started now."
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Commander Roderick folded his arms and stared at the two men, "You want me to do what?"
"Move your search area," Gibbs repeated with a hint of acerbity. "Todd and MacKenzie aren't here. You're wasting your time."
"Am I?" Roderick arched an eyebrow. "Congresswoman Elbert stated that they were on board with her. You're calling her a liar?"
"Yes."
The Coast Guard Commander sighed, rubbing his forehead, "Look, gentlemen... it's obvious that these two women are important to you." He gestured towards the debris field, "It's equally obvious now that neither of them survived the explosion. I'm sorry for that but denying that it's so isn't going to bring them back. Let us recover the bodies so we can bring some sort of closure to their families."
Harm stepped forward, his gaze intense, "They're not dead yet, Commander, but they will be if we don't get out there and find them. How are you going to feel when it turns out that you contributed to their deaths by not expanding your search?"
Roderick scowled, "You're not asking me to expand my search. You're asking me to abandon it altogether!"
Putting a hand out to stop Gibbs from speaking, Harm concentrated on the Commander, "What I'm asking is that you continue your search. You said it yourself. This is no longer a rescue but a recovery mission. Your men have been pulling debris from the water for two hours. They haven't found any bodies or parts of bodies, have they?" Roderick shook his head slowly. Harm stepped a little closer, "That's because there's nothing to find. They weren't on the Gerrymander when it exploded." He pointed out towards the ocean, "They're out there and they need to be rescued. Now."
Roderick looked from one man to the other, "You know what you're suggesting?" His disbelief was obvious.
Gibbs stepped forward, "Yes we do. There's been a string of murders in Washington, D.C. Agent Todd and Colonel MacKenzie were looking into it. The trail led them down here and the evidence was beginning to point towards the Congresswoman." He looked down at the deck, "We knew Elbert was smart but we underestimated her audacity. This was to be a preliminary interview to see if she could establish any alibis. No one expected her to try and derail the investigation by taking out the lead investigators."
"You're calling the Congresswoman a cold-blooded killer? Have you both lost your minds?" Roderick looked incredulous.
"No, but I am losing my patience! Dammit, Commander, open your eyes! Elbert is brilliant and dangerous. Two days ago, Agent Todd's computer at NCIS was hacked into and her files pertaining to this case were deleted. Now she's missing and the blood we found at Elbert's boathouse is her type. The Congresswoman wants you to stay here and search. You don't think she might have had an ulterior motive?" Gibbs' anger was bubbling close to the surface.
The Commander folded his arms, staring from one man to the other. "And now you want me to believe that she threw those two overboard while they were still alive? Why the hell would she take the chance if she's as smart as you say?"
"Evidence." Harm gave the Commander a hard stare. "There's no statute of limitations on murder. They were on the Gerrymander. If their deaths were caused strictly by drowning, it'll be harder to get past reasonable doubt with a jury. She'll have some story set up to explain how they wound up in the water, I'll guarantee it." He looked at Roderick for a long moment, "C'mon, Captain. We're wasting time that they don't have."
The Coast Guard Commander stood silently and then muttered, "This is going to cost me my commission... Do either of you know how difficult it will be to search at night?"
Gibbs allowed himself a grim smile, "It might not be as hard as you think. Ever used a thermal viewer?"
Off the North Carolina coast 0240 Local
Mac brought a hand up to scrub her face, aware that fatigue was making her movements wooden and clumsy. She stoically kept away from her eyes although the desire to rub them was intense. It would only aggravate the burning sensation. They felt swollen and her vision was blurry now. Mac didn't look up at the stars anymore, she couldn't see them. Her focus had narrowed down to the simple business of staying afloat. Life had devolved to a basic premise: not dying meant keep moving. She wasn't that strong a swimmer but what she was doing required more of determination and stamina than any sort of skill. It was just her and the ocean now. Kate had succumbed to unconsciousness 53 minutes ago.
Dawn would come in about three hours or so. Putting aside Marine bravado, Mac didn't expect to survive a day in the sun. She was already at the edge of her resources. Blistering heat and intensifying thirst would be more than she could bear. She squeezed her eyes shut, "God, Harm, where are you? I'm trying, I really am but it's getting so hard."
Seven hours in the ocean had been more than enough time for introspection. It had been depressing. Why was it that the mind never had any trouble recalling awkward, embarrassing or stupid moments with perfect clarity? The silences that had grown while Kate had faded into oblivion had been perfect opportunities to examine her regrets. There'd been quite a few and a number of them had to do with Harm. Maybe it would be better this way. He didn't need to be saddled with all the issues she brought to the table. Maybe she should just quit, give up on what seemed to be a losing battle anyway. No one was going to find them. All she had to do was let go and quietly sink into the ocean. How hard could it be?
Almost immediately came memories of basic training and that damn swimming pool. God, did her mind miss any chance to torment her? She hadn't learned to swim until she joined the Marines. Opportunities to learn at an earlier age hadn't exactly been prevalent in the deserts of Arizona. She'd damn near drown and her instructor had had to leap in to rescue her. There'd been the day spent in the infirmary while they made sure she wasn't going to develop pneumonia. After her release, she'd spent almost all her free moments at the pool, her fear of failing even stronger than her fear of dying. Her DIs had turned a blind eye to her activities so long as she was where she was supposed to be at the right times. Her time sense had been a boon. She'd never explained it and they'd never asked. After a while, their expressions of puzzlement had given way to indifferent acceptance. Officer Candidate MacKenzie was NEVER late for anything.
Oh God, she could still recall the abject terror as she fought against the overwhelming need to breathe. The blackness that had engulfed her and then the gagging and coughing on the side of the pool after they'd fished her sorry ass out. Worse had been the looks on her classmates' faces as they hauled her out on a stretcher. Pity and disdain seemed to be equally divided and her humiliation had been complete.
Mac closed her eyes in frustration. Oh hell, talk about irony. When it came right down to it, she was too damned scared of drowning to just let go. It was going to have to overwhelm her on its own. Sighing, she fell back into her 'one miserable minute at a time' routine. She'd fight the memories and try not to think about anything beyond surviving to the next sixty seconds.
Forty-seven minutes later, she saw a dorsal fin. Forty-six minutes ago, she'd have sworn the only thing she was capable of feeling anymore was exhaustion. Now she knew different. Her heart was threatening to hammer itself out of her chest as she watched the fin cruise slowly past and then sink into the water. Five seconds went by and then ten. God, where was it? Her pulse continued to beat a steady tattoo in her ears as she tried to watch in all directions at once. Thirty seconds... dammit, how long did it take a shark to decide what to bite? Forty seconds. Her blood pressure must be going through the roof. Her heartbeat was drowning out everything else...
Suddenly, the area was flooded by a bright white light. Squeezing her eyes shut against the pain, Mac finally realized the sound she'd been hearing had been the beat of helicopter rotors. She couldn't help herself, she began to laugh.
Aboard USCG helicopter Off the North Carolina coast 0405 Local
Harm continued to massage Mac's hand as he watched her sleep. She'd been in the throes of some sort of delirium and Dr. Mallard had sedated her when they'd gotten her onboard. He couldn't keep himself from touching her and hopefully, this was doing some good. Her hand was tightly clenched into a fist and it seemed to be stuck. It had been the hand holding onto to Kate and they'd had to cut the agent's shirt to separate the two women. Stubborn as hell, that was his Marine. Tearing his eyes away, Harm looked over to the other side of the copter and his expression darkened. Mallard and the Coast Guard medic were still working intently. Todd was in a bad way and he felt guilty for the happiness radiating through him. He'd been shocked and then angry to discover that Kate had been shot. That had been nothing compared to the ire of normally equable Dr. Mallard. Although he'd only met the man once, he felt he knew him from Mac's descriptions. She had kept him informed of the game she and the Doctor were playing that was driving Agent DiNozzo crazy. Harm had no sympathy for the younger NCIS agent. You hit on a Marine, you took your chances.
They were on their way to the Naval Hospital at Lejeune. Harm had insisted. Not only did he feel the military doctors would be more familiar with the condition of the two women but there was no way in hell he would put them in the same hospital building as Michelle Elbert. That bitch had had her chance at them, she wasn't going to get another. Gibbs and Walters were following on the Block Island. When Walters had delivered the Doctor and the thermal viewer to the Coast Guard station on Bogue, Harm had unrepentantly used a combination of logic, rank and temper to get himself on board the helicopter. The Coasties had been a bit leery of letting Mallard go because of his age but he'd been as stubborn as Harm and his medical credentials couldn't be denied. Gibbs had backed the Doctor up, knowing that there was no way in hell that he would manage to get himself aboard. Someone from NCIS had to be there when they found Kate.
Harm returned his attention to Mac, brushing her hair back off her forehead and readjusting the blanket a bit. His gaze hardened at the angry looking cuts on her wrists and drifted back towards Kate, Mallard's irritated mutter about 'damned bacterial soup' coming to mind. Infection was going to be a problem along with dehydration. Would Kate lose her arm? Grimly, he focused on his Marine again. Physically, he knew she would recover and he would be right there to help with the rest. While that was happening, he would also make sure to nail Elbert to the wall.
