Disclaimer: Yeah, don't belong to me, wish they did.

Ugh, I apologize for the long delay in updating yet again. The hectic level in my life kinda increased exponentially. Unfortunately it's not going to slack off. Updates will continue to be rather sporatic until at least April 25 as I have yet more tests and projects and Aggiecon starts on the 21st. I'll try to update once more before the Con starts. But if I can't get something up by then don't expect one until the 25th 'cause I'll be virutally living on campus to help run the convention. So I apologize in advance if I don't update again for yet another week.

Thanks to LiseGirardi, SailorGirl97, mjag, froggy, Radiorox, snugglebug, jaka, minorcadence, shirik, Tina Frank, cbw, Disaster Child, zeilfanaat, starryeyes10, eridani, moonlight, martini, MichelleLee, rainydays, Beach chickJASSNL, and anyone else I missed. I really appreciate them, it's nice to read reviews after the insanity that is school. So again, sorry for the delay but unfortunately the bad update schedule will continue for at least a bit longer. Hopefully things will get back on a more normal schedule once the Con is over and all the projects and whatnot have been turned in. On the upside, I found out I leave in August for Air Force Officer Training School, whoop! So anyways, read, review, and enjoy! BTW, rescue is the next chapter.

USMC Base Camp, Iraq

0100 ZULU

Mac stepped off the C-130 and glanced around the flight line. It was rather unnerving to be back here so soon after leaving. Moving away from the plane she reflected on the past couple days events. She'd been rather surprised that the General had actually agreed to let her go; she'd been fully prepared to write up and submit her resignation then and there. Shuddering slightly she recalled the look on Harm's face in the picture. Shoving away the thoughts she looked up as someone approached.

She grinned as she recognized Gunny. Making her way towards him she commented, "Reduced to welcoming duty now, Gunny?'

He flashed a smile at her, "I volunteered, Colonel. The doctor wants to see you immediately."

Mac sighed and resisted the urge to roll her eyes, "Of course she does." Gunny laughed, taking her sea bag from the Air Force staff sergeant holding it behind her. Turning he headed for the medical building, glancing over at Mac to make sure she was following. Realizing she wasn't moving as quickly as normal he adjusted his stride, mentally cursing himself for forgetting about her injuries. Mac smiled slightly then asked, "How's the search going, Gunny?"

Gunny frowned, looking forward. His voice was grim, matching his expression, "Nothing yet, ma'am. We thought we had a lead a couple times but they didn't pan out. Mr. Webb called, says he's got the CIA looking also in their spare time."

Mac grimaced, "Yeah, I heard about that."

Gunny glanced over, "Every little bit helps, ma'am." She forced a smile, resolving to ignore her own personal feelings on the subject at least until Harm was found. Gunny hesitated for a moment then asked cautiously, "What are you doing here, Colonel?"

Mac smiled innocently, "Going over Rules of Engagement with the troops, Gunny." The look on his face clearly indicated he didn't believe her. Sighing she lost the smile, glancing down for a brief moment before looking forward again, "I need to be here for Harm, Gunny."

He frowned but didn't reply, instead holding the door to the doctor's open. It took all of five seconds for Doctor Marks to appear, her face set in an expression of clear disapproval. Her voice was firm, "Thank you, Gunnery Sergeant. If you'll wait here I need to speak with Colonel MacKenzie." Gunny nodded, shooting a sympathetic smile at Mac, he definitely didn't want to be on the receiving end of the Captain's ire. Mac smiled faintly back, she wasn't terribly thrilled with the idea of an encounter either. Doctor Marks glanced at her, speaking in exactly polite tones, "If you'll come with me, Colonel."

Mac nodded and followed the doctor. Once in the same room as before Doctor Marks turned with a frown, "I don't agree with this at all."

Mac arched an eyebrow slightly, unsure whether to be amused or insulted as she sat down. After a moment of thought she spoke, trying her best to take everything in stride, "You don't need to agree, Doctor. I'm here now and I'm going to stay here."

Marks huffed, looking at the Colonel irritably. She seemed to decide it wasn't worth arguing about. She glanced down at the chart in her hand, asking calmly, "The doctor at Bethesda cleared you for limited duty?"

Mac smiled tightly, the doctor didn't see the glint in her eyes, "Yes."

"Colonel, I'm really not sure clearing you is such a good idea. You've been under a lot of stress recently and your ankle has only been in the cast for just over a week," the doctor protested, trying in vain to convince her to stay in the States. He'd been trying for the past hour, phrasing his protests differently each time. He'd listed every reason he could think of for her to stay off duty for at least another week. Nothing had worked, Colonel MacKenzie had simply stared him down, calmly disagreeing with everything he said.

With fraying patience Mac disagreed again, trying to remain as polite as possible, "Doctor, I'm fine. I will be cleared or I'll quite simply no longer be under your jurisdiction."

The doctor blinked, confused, "Excuse me, ma'am?"

Mac permitted herself a slight smile, "If you don't clear me, I'll be resigning. One way or another I'm getting over there, through you or around you, either works for me."

With a frustrated sigh the doctor threw up his hands, "Fine, I'll clear you for limited duty. But there will be a list of restrictions! And you will report to the doctor every day you're there, if there is a problem the doctor will immediately have you sent back to the US."

Mac smirked, "Whatever you say, Commander."

Muttering in frustration the doctor wrote out the clearance, he wasn't appreciative of being bullied. It didn't help that a two star general had called earlier to "discuss" the Colonel's medical clearance. Thrusting the paperwork at Mac the doctor stalked out. Mac watched him go with an amused smile. She glanced down at the papers, skimming them quickly to make sure there wasn't anything there that wasn't supposed to be.

Doctor Marks glanced back up with a sigh, "Very well, Colonel. I'll want to do a check up on you every day though. I assume you brought your crutches with you as well?"

Mac nodded, "Of course, doctor." At Marks' nod Mac stood and headed back out to where Gunny was waiting, leaving a rather annoyed doctor behind her. She found Gunny conversing quietly near the exit with a corporal. Mac was about halfway across the room when the corporal nodded then left. Gunny glanced up and smiled when he saw her. She could see a slight difference in his attitude now. He seemed somewhat more cheerful and confident than he had when she'd left to speak with the doctor. She frowned slightly, wondering what the corporal had told him.

When she was within a comfortable speaking distance Gunny spoke quietly, his voice tense with restrained excitement, "Ma'am, we think we have a lead on the Commander."

Mac felt as if her heart had stopped beating for a moment before it began to race. Taking a deep breath she stopped in front of him, asking as calmly as she could, "Where?"

"We don't know the specifics yet, but there's been a report from a CIA agent. I'm going to go and get the full report now, care to join me?"

Mac grinned, "You couldn't stop me, Gunny."

He chuckled and opened the door, automatically standing out of the way for her to exit first before following. Outside he motioned towards a nearby building, "This way, ma'am." She nodded and fell in beside him, consciously controlling her breathing in an attempt to slow her heart rate. The sun was beginning to peek over the horizon, gradually lighting the compound. She looked around, watching the various military personnel stride past, intent on whatever their goals were. Mac hadn't really paid much attention to it all the first time she'd been here, more intent on getting to the doctor and then reporting to the Colonel.

Seeing Gunny suddenly stop out of the corner of her eye she glanced over at him then up, registering that they'd reached the building. She'd managed to calm down a bit during the brief walk, having momentarily distracted herself from the knowledge of a possible lead on Harm. However, now faced with the sudden prospect of actually hearing the report she felt nervous. Realizing Gunny was watching her in concern she smiled slightly and walked through the door he was holding open.

Inside a sergeant and the corporal from the medical center waited, along with another man dressed in local garb. The two marines promptly came to attention. Mac nodded an acknowledgement, "As you were." She studied the civilian for a moment, there was something slightly off about him but she couldn't quite place it. Gunny entered the building behind her and closed the door. Glancing over her shoulder Mac moved further into the room, allowing Gunny to step past her.

Gunny glanced around, nodding briefly to the civilian, "Mr. Smith." Mac abruptly realized that the other man was the CIA agent that had been previously mentioned. She shook her head slightly to herself annoyed that she hadn't figured it out sooner. Moving to the table in the center of the room gunny, leaned a hip against it and crossed his arms casually. "So, what has the CIA heard this time?"

Mac shot him a glance but stayed silent, waiting to hear what the man had to say. She didn't miss the distinct difference in tone from when he'd spoken earlier. At the doctor's he'd seemed excited, optimistic about the news. Now he was cool and distant, Mac could sense a sudden reserve in him. She suspected previous leads from the CIA had been amongst those to fail rather spectacularly. Focusing her attention on the man she waited for his answer to Victor's question.

The agent smiled slightly, speaking coolly, a clear north eastern accent coming through, "I was in a village, looking for someone when I heard mention of a secretive group holed up a short distance away. Apparently this group only appeared, by truck, about a week and a half ago. They don't leave their building and drive away anyone who gets near. The direction these trucks came from coincides with the general direction the buildings the Colonel and Lieutenant escaped from."

Gunny frowned; it had the potential to be the correct location. But so had every other lead they'd received and so far none had worked out. He was still pondering his response when Mac spoke up, an odd look on her face, "Where is this village located?"

The man glanced at her then did a double take, clearly shocked. He was silent for a moment before responding, "Colonel MacKenzie? I thought you were in the US on medical leave."

She frowned irritably, "Yes, now answer the question."

He blinked, surprised at her animosity. He had assumed she would be somewhat amenable to CIA involvement given her past association with the agency in general and Webb in particular. Seeing the sudden flash of anger in her eyes at his hesitation he shook off his preoccupation and answered, "About eighty miles east of here, give or take."

Mac looked at the corporal, slipping instantly into the comfortable skin of superior officer, "I need a map, ASAP." The young man nodded and immediately left the room, heading deeper into the building. He reappeared within minutes, a detailed map of the surrounding area in hand. Spreading it out over the table he looked up at her questioningly.

Mac moved to the table, studying the map for a moment. Gunny watched her curiously but didn't interfere. The sergeant and corporal looked puzzled but were silent, not wishing to question such a high ranking officer. Especially not a fellow marine who'd managed to escape captivity, they respected her too much to speak. The agent however, had no such compunction. Stepping to her side he frowned, "What's going on?"

She ignored him, pointing to a spot on the map, "There."

The agent glanced down at the map in surprise, nodding, "Yes, that's the location of the village." He looked up at her, eyes narrowed in consideration, "How did you know?"

Still ignoring him Mac looked over at Gunny who was watching thoughtfully. She spoke quietly, voice taught with command, "We need to go there, Gunny. That's where Harm is."

Gunny frowned slightly; he'd heard rumors of the Colonel's sudden flashes in relation to cases and clearly remembered her reaction to Harm's disappearance a few years back. It was rather an odd way to do business but he trusted her too much to disagree. Nodding slightly he glanced at the sergeant, "Sergeant, get the squad ready to move out immediately." He glanced back at Mac, cocking his head slightly. He was about to ask how certain she was but stopped himself when he remembered the CIA agent was still there. Though he was certain this would get back to the agency headquarters Gunny wasn't about to add to that report. Instead he said, "If he is there, ma'am, we'll bring him back."

She shook her head slightly, "I'm going with you."

He shook his head immediately, "I can't allow you to do that, ma'am. You're still wounded."

Mac frowned and he saw the stubborn set of her jaw. Gunny sighed inwardly; this wasn't going to go well. "I'm going, Gunny."

"Ma'am…" he tried to protest but was cut off.

"Gunny, I'm going with you. That's an order."

He sighed and came to attention. His voice was stiff when he answered, "Yes, ma'am." Turning sharply on his heel he strode out of the building, perfectly precise, the corporal on his heels.

Mac sighed and turned back to the map, staring at it quietly. She knew he was there, the instant the agent had mentioned the village she'd felt an instant recognition. As soon as he described the location she'd known for certain that Harm was there. And she knew he was alive. But she had a bad feeling that if they didn't get there soon, he wouldn't be alive for much longer.

She could feel the agent's eyes on her. Glancing over at him she arched an eyebrow curiously, silently waiting for him to speak. After a moment he did, "How do you know that's where the Commander is? We're not even certain he's there."

Smiling slightly she stated simply, "I just know." With that she nodded briefly to the man then left. Once outside she breathed a sigh of relief. Mac felt much more comfortable once she was no longer in the presence of the CIA agent. Though she figured this particular agent probably didn't have any secret agenda concerning her or Harm, she couldn't help but link him to Webb. Glancing around, she spotted Gunny and his men gearing up nearby.

Gunny spotted her come out and trotted up clearly upset. He came to attention in front of her, "Colonel, we're just about ready to move out."

Mac looked at him for a moment, "Gunny, I'm not going to do anything foolish. Give me a vest and a pistol; I'll stay in the humvee until everything is clear." She paused and studied his reaction, he still wasn't happy. She glanced away for a moment, staring off across the base. Finally she spoke softly, "Gunny, I need to be there for him." She looked back at him, "I have to be."

He looked at her for a moment then nodded, his expression softening slightly, "Yes, ma'am. I'll have Corporal Miller get gear for you. It will be waiting at the first humvee."

She nodded slightly, "Thank you, Gunny." He nodded back, then turned and headed back to his squad, leaving Mac to follow at her own pace. Taking one last look around the base Mac headed after him, steadfastly ignoring the dull ache in her foot. She knew she should probably be using her crutches and not just the walking cast. However, she couldn't bring herself to do so, knowing that if she were to use them she most definitely would not be allowed to go on the retrieval. She couldn't bear the thought of not being there when they found Harm.