Okay, first of all, I have to apologize for the way I wrote the nurse from the hospital. I was trying to make her sound tired and busy but it came out angry and bitchy. The outcome was completely unintentional.

Second, some notes about this fic:

(A) this will be a Harm/Mac fic. I have a Harm/Meg fic in the works and I should have it posted by the end of the month if all goes according to plan. I love the character of Meg Austin and I wish she hadn't left the show (though I am very happy with the character of Mac as well) and when I was trying to think of someone to run the investigation she and Kate Pike were the only ones who came to mind, and Kate always seems to cause more problems than she's worth, both on the show and in fanfiction.

(B) Carolyn DID pass the Bar Exam, and that whole ordeal with her not really being a lawyernever happened.

(C) Jennifer Coates is (at least in this story) studying psychology in school. I don't know if this is a fact from the show or not, but I readin another fic that she was studying to become a psychologist and, as I myself am working toward my degree in psychology so I'm sort of injecting myself into Jennifer's character.

(D) Little AJ Roberts will be called 'little AJ' all through this fic, and any others of mine that he is in, and AJ Chegwidden will be either Chegwidden, the Admiral, or AJ Chegwidden. I know the writers were being cute and sentimental when they had Bud and Harriet name their son after the Admiral, but honestly it's a pain for writing, especially in the upcoming chapter where they're both in the same conversation.

(E) Bud still has both his legs, though he did have a close call in that minefield. No leg-loss in this fic.

(F) Grandma Sarah is alive (though sheis not in this chapter she will be in later parts of this fic and I wanted to get this note out of the way).

(G) Manolo Blahnik's are definitely not mine. I can barely afford a mocha every morning, let alone those amazing shoes.

(H) I'm a pop-culture reference junkie (too many episodes of Buffy andGilmore Girls, I guess) and I probably unconsciously reference a boatload of shows, books, movies, songs, et cetera, every time I write something.

I think that's it for now.

Oh, one more thing. When the show ends in... two more episodes? I will continue writing, regardless of the outcome. I feel there are still a ton of stories that need to be told and I want to make sure that the ones I can think of get out there.

Thank you.

M


Usually when she woke up Sarah MacKenzie would jump out of bed, go for a run, shower, dress, eat, and then head off to work with plenty of time to spare. She was a morning person, despite her bouts with insomnia, and she couldn't remember the last time she had honestly felt like hitting the snooze button and rolling over for a few more minutes of sleep.

As it was a few more hours didn't feel like they'd be enough for Mac.

She had slept in Harm's apartment before. They had shared hotel rooms when cases warranted it and they crashed on each other's couches when they worked too late or just needed to not be alone for the night. But she had never been brave enough to sleep in his bed, surrounded by his scent and wrapped up in sheets that had caressed his skin. There were some lines that they just didn't cross. Unspoken, unwritten rules that they abided by. Rules and regulations that went beyond their jobs. These were the laws of best friends.

But with the death of one of her best friends and the litany of changes that the next morning would bring, Mac had felt vulnerable and she had found herself curled up with her head on Harm's pillow before she even realized what she was doing.

The only thing missing was Harm himself, who, Mac suspected, hadn't slept at all and had been punishing himself for some obscure misstep that he felt had led to Harriet Simms-Roberts tragic death.

After lingering in the bed for as long as she could, Mac took a quick shower and got dressed before going to wake everyone else. Harm had obviously left to pick up Meg from the airport, and Mac was fighting the urge to call him to make sure that he was alright, to make sure for herself that nothing had happened to him. Mac was hurt by the fact that Harm had been the one who hadn't wanted them to all take their own cars home the night before, yet first thing in the morning he headed off on his own without so much as saying goodbye to her. Logically she knew that, had she been awake, he would have, and that he hadn't woken her because he cared about her too much to disturb her while she got the few hours of sleep she could, but it hurt her heart that Harm hadn't told her when he was leaving.

The phone rang and Mac instinctively picked it up. "Hello?" she said, hoping that the others wouldn't be too noisy when they started moving around.

"Is Harm there?" a female voice asked.

"Not at the moment, he went to pick a friend up at the airport," Mac said. Jealousy reared it's ugly head, making her wonder how often Harm got early morning wake up calls from women other than herself. "Can I take a message?"

"No, that's alright. I'll call back later," the woman said before hanging up.

Mac frowned, staring at the phone for a minute before setting it back down in the cradle. "Everything alright?" Carolyn asked.

"I think so," Mac said, unable to shake off the weird feeling the call had given her. "Um… the bathroom is back there," she said, pointing through Harm's bedroom. "There are extra toothbrushes in the medicine cabinet… towels are in the linen closet… um… anything else should be under the sink…" she said distractedly.

"The only thing I want right now is more sleep," Sturgis said through a yawn.

"Coffee might help," Jennifer said, moving toward the kitchen. "I'll make it… um… does anyone know where the Commander keeps his coffee?" she asked.

"Freezer, third shelf in a blue glass container," Mac said. "The filters are in the cupboard above the coffee maker," she added before the Petty Officer could ask.

"Exactly how often are you here, Mac?" Sturgis teased.

Mac rolled her eyes. After working so closely with Harm—and just plain being so close to him—Mac was used to being on the receiving end of comments that indicated that people thought there was more going on between them. It had stopped bothering her a long time before, though sometimes it started to get to her, especially when her feelings for Harm started making their way towards the surface again.

Like they were right at that moment.

Normally Mac could keep her temper under control, but with her lack of sleep and the emotional night she still didn't want to admit had happened, Sarah MacKenzie snapped.

"Sturgis would you just drop it already, alright? You know Harm and I spend time together outside of the office. So what if I know where he keeps his coffee? I know that you keep a stash of sunflower seeds on your kitchen counter in that ceramic pot your sister's kid made for you in art class. I know that Carolyn has an insane amount of Manolo's that would make Carrie Bradshaw jealous. I know that Bud keeps Girl Scout cookies in his desk drawer at work. I know that the Admiral has more weapons in his house than he has forks. I know things about people at the office that no one else knows, that they don't even know that I know. Just because I know personal things about Harm or Harm's apartment does not mean anything beyond the fact that Harm is my best friend and that I've spent time here before," Mac said, her voice and gaze deadly.

With that Mac walked over to a nook by a bank of windows and she sat down, taking comfort in the familiar surroundings.

"What the hell are 'Manolo's' and who the hell is Carrie Bradshaw?" Sturgis asked Jennifer as she made a large pot of coffee.

"Manolo Blahnik's are shoes, Commander. Very expensive shoes. Minimum four hundred USD, though they can go up into the thousands. And Carrie Bradshaw is Sarah Jessica Parker's character on Sex and the City. Manolo's are her shoe of choice," Jennifer said with a small smile. "I'm guessing you don't watch too much HBO, sir."

Sturgis shot her a look and then headed off to take a shower as Carolyn had finished up in the bathroom.

An hour later Mac was parking her 'Vette in her space beside Harm's SUV in the mostly-full JAG parking lot. Harriet's parking spot was conspicuously empty. Jennifer Coates was sitting next to Mac, looking like a lost little girl. Harriet had always been good to everyone, but even more so to Jennifer, especially in her first few months working at JAG.

"You don't have to be here today, Jen, you know that, right?" Mac said gently. "The admiral can get by without you, if you need some time…"

"I know, but I need to work," Jennifer said. "I need to do something… to keep from thinking about it… I need to help find who did this. If you and the Commanders will allow it."

"We not only allow it, but we demand it," Mac said, a small smile spreading across her lips. "C'mon. We've got a long day ahead of us."

Jennifer groaned as she slid out of the car and secured her cover on her head. Her light brown hair was still wet as Harm's apartment lacked a hair dryer, and the wind and her damp hair made her shiver. At least, that's what she convinced herself caused the tremor.

Mac walked with Jen until she reached the floor where the courtrooms were housed. She had a continuance to plead for, a tough sell because the case hadn't been going her way anyway. Jen took Mac's coat and wished her luck before continuing to the elevators. Mac headed for the courtroom where she would hopefully win her battle.

Her spirits sank, however, when she saw a slim blonde woman in Naval dress hug Harm as he came out of a courtroom at the end of the hall.

"She had to be blonde, didn't she?" Mac muttered, making a beeline for the door to her courtroom, praying that Harm didn't see her.

Once she was in her seat at the defence table, Mac relaxed a bit. In court she felt safe, Harm's H-and-K demonstration notwithstanding, and she could easily make sense of things when she was in a room where the rules were firmly set and everyone abided by them. Outside of the courtroom, however, was where emotions and life stuff made things messy.

"Morning, Colonel," the prosecutor, Lieutenant Commander James Holtz, said pleasantly. He and Mac got along alright, though they rarely worked together as he was assigned to the JAG office at Norfolk and was only in DC because of this case.

"Commander," Mac nodded, not up to much more.

"Are you alright?" Holtz asked as he set down his briefcase and cover.

Mac sighed and handed him the form she had filled out requesting a continuance. He read it over and frowned. "Continuance due to personal reasons. What the hell are you trying to pull, Mac?" he asked.

Taking a slow breath so she didn't lose it like she had that morning with Sturgis, Mac said, "A very close friend of mine was killed last night. It would not be fair for my client to have me as his representation at this moment as I cannot defend him to the best of my abilities." She looked at him, hoping to appeal to him personally. "Please don't fight this, James."

Holtz handed her back the paper and nodded. "As long as Admiral Stevens is alright with it, I won't fight it."

"Thank you," Mac said in a whisper before her client was led in. A minute later they all rose and stood at attention until Admiral Stevens uttered an 'at ease' while sitting down on the bench.

"Commander Holtz, is the prosecution ready to continue?" Stevens asked.

"At this time I must defer to Colonel MacKenzie who has a motion for a continuance prepared," Holtz said.

Stevens looked at Mac who handed the motion to the Sergeant who had come to retrieve it. "Personal reasons? You will have to be more specific, Colonel," Stevens said.

Mac sighed softly. "A co-worker and close friend of mine, Lieutenant Harriet Simms-Roberts, was killed late last night. I have already discussed this with Commander Holtz and he had no arguments against this."

"Is this true?" Stevens asked Holtz.

"It is, your honour."

Stevens nodded. "Continuance granted. Court will reconvene on April 3 at 0800," he said before banging his gavel and motioning for the defendant to be led away. Mac would go talk to him in the brig later.

Ten minutes later Mac was up in her office, trying to delay the moment when she would have to face Harm again. Her emotions were too close to the surface to be in any kind of contact to Harmon Rabb Jr, especially when the beautiful blonde litigater was sticking to him like a wet flight suit.

Mac had buried herself in answering e-mails when the knock on her door—that she had been expecting but dreading—came. "Enter," she said somewhat reluctantly. She knew it would be Harm and Meg.

"Hey, Mac. Did you get your continuance?" Harm asked, coming into the office with Meg at his side.

"Continued until April third," Mac said without looking up. "My client will not be happy."

"How'd Holtz take it?" Harm asked.

"Fine. He was very understanding. What about you? Any luck getting Miles sent to solitary?" Mac asked, still refusing to look away from her computer screen.

"Not enough evidence to warrant it," Harm said, his voice heavy with regret. "All communications will be monitored, visitors have to be cleared by the warden, all visits will be monitored and done through glass, yadda, yadda, yadda. Not what I was hoping for."

"Yeah, well, Morris has never really gotten over that impromptu H-and-K demo. You should expect him to be a hard sell by now," Mac said. Finally unable to hold off any longer she looked up. "Hello," she said to Meg. "Meg Austin, I assume."

Meg nodded. "It's nice to finally meet you," Meg said.

"Likewise," Mac said, forcing a smile onto her face.

Harm noticed that Mac's smile was somewhat less than genuine and he turned to Meg immediately. "Why don't you go check in with the Admiral before the staff meeting?" he suggested to his former partner. Meg nodded and excused herself and Harm closed Mac's door before sitting down across from her. "Okay, spill."

"Spill what?" Mac asked innocently.

"Whatever is bothering you," Harm said. "And don't you dare say it's Harriet because I know that whatever is going on with you goes far beyond that," he added, knowing where she would turn to hide.

Mac sighed and sat back. "I don't honestly know what it is. I just… feel a little intimidated by Meg, I think," she admitted.

"Intimidated? How? Has she done something?" Harm asked, confused.

"No, she hasn't done anything. We've spoken a total of eleven words to each other and you were there for every syllable," Mac said.

"Then what is it?"

Mac sighed and scrubbed her hands over her face before looking into the stormy eyes of her partner. "I guess it's just that… I've never seen you as excited about the prospect of working with me as you were when you heard that Meg was on her way here," Mac said. "I'm not going to even try to guess what kind of relationship you and Meg had when you were partners, but I thought that you enjoyed working with me. I never thought that you felt like I was a replacement, even when you compared me to Meg in the beginning. But now… I feel like I don't have a place… in your world."

Harm smiled softly. "Mac, you are not a replacement, you never were. When Meg left… it was sudden, but life in the Navy is anything but stable, you know that as well as anyone. I knew I would be getting a new partner when Meg left, and I can't tell you how lucky I feel that I got you," he said honestly. "I may have been excited about Meg coming back, but that's because she's a good friend, a good investigator, and, yes, I have missed working with her. But would I give up working side by side with you? Never." He stood up and circled her desk, pulling Mac up into a hug that she willingly fell into. "And as for you not having a place in my world? That is insane. You have the top spot, Mac."

"I thought flying had that spot," Mac said softly.

"You're more important, Mac. Don't ever doubt that," Harm said honestly. He gave her a final squeeze and then pulled back to look into her eyes. "No more doubts, okay?"

Mac nodded. "No doubts," she agreed.

"So you gonna stop hiding in your office now?" Harm asked with a lopsided smile. Mac swatted at him and then nodded. "Good. I've dealt with my cases, and the Admiral wants me to help you and Carolyn sort through the cases Harriet worked on in the past year."

Mac sighed. "Bring on the paper cuts," she muttered, turning off her computer and following Harm out of her office.

While they walked Mac debated on whether or not to tell Harm about the woman who had called that morning. Her jealousy was already reaching critical mass despite Harm's assurances and she wasn't sure if she could deal with another blast from Harm's past—or, worse, a current flame—coming into the picture and pushing her out of what she felt was her rightful place next to Harm.

Harm put his hand on the small of her back, leading her into the conference room they were going to be working out of. The feeling of his hand against her back, even through the layers of clothing she was wearing, convinced Mac to keep her mouth shut.

And she didn't feel even the faintest hint of guilt.

"How did you sleep last night?" Harm asked gently as they sat down in front of two of the three stacks of files on the table.

"Fine," Mac said noncommittally. "I mean, once I fell asleep I slept great. It was the getting to sleep that was hard," she said with a slight blush. She looked over at him. "Sorry for taking your bed."

"It was not a problem. You were exhausted and the couches suck for sleeping on," Harm said. "Something you can attest to." Mac sighed. He was right. His couches did suck for sleeping. Sleeping on military-issue cots was more comfortable.

"Even so, I should have at least asked before taking over your entire bed," Mac said.

"Mac, you don't have to ask to use anything of mine. Really. You were tired, the bed was there, the logical conclusion is you taking the bed," Harm said. "Look, Mac, I didn't ask you how you slept because I was subtly trying to make you feel guilty for using my bed. I asked you because I know you haven't been sleeping since we got assigned the Miles case and yesterday was… one of the top ten worst days of my life, and I'm sure it ranked right up there for you, too. That's it. No ulterior motive, no guilt trip. Just a simple question coming from a place of concern for my best friend."

Mac smiled softly. "In that case, I slept very well, thank you," she said. "I could have used a few more hours, but that's my only complaint."

Harm reached over and rubbed his hand over her back for a minute before turning to the files. Mac turned her attention to the files as well, trying to see if any of the people involved—the victims, the accused, the ones found guilty, family members, friends, anyone—would have reason to kill Harriet.

It was pointless, though.

"Why are we wasting our time here?" Mac asked an hour later. Carolyn had joined them shortly after they had started and was going through the third stack at a steady pace. "If anyone involved in these cases is angry enough to kill, Harriet wouldn't have been the target. You, me, Bud, Carolyn, Sturgis… the lawyers, the ones investigating. We would have been the targets. Not someone who is office-bound and didn't even come in contact with the majority of the people involved in these cases. Unless…"

"Unless what?" the Admiral asked from the doorway. Meg was standing just a little behind him, obviously feeling a little awkward. Jennifer Coates was standing next to Meg. The three lawyers moved to stand at attention but Chegwidden waved them off. "What are you thinking, Mac?" he asked, going to sit down at the table. Meg sat down next to Harm and Jennifer sat next to the Admiral.

"Just that maybe this isn't about Harriet directly," Mac said. "I hate even thinking this," she said softly, "but maybe killing Harriet was meant to be punishment for one of us."

"Probably Bud," Harm put in regretfully.

"Harriet and little AJ are the most important people in the world to him," Chegwidden nodded. He took a slow breath. "Alright. I'll send some security over to the Simms residence. If you're right about this, Mac, I doubt this son of a bitch will stop with one death."

Mac emotionally collapsed into herself at the thought of losing her godson. There were no outward signs of her distress, though, so her breakdown went unnoticed by all.

"How involved is Bud in the Miles case? You're still thinking that this all comes back to that, right?" Meg asked.

Harm nodded. "I'm sure Miles is the key," he said. "And without Bud's work we wouldn't have been able to pin down Miles as the guy behind the attacks. Bud found more incriminating evidence from old crimes scenes and reports from NCIS than I thought possible."

"Alright. As much as I hate to do this, I'm going to have to send Bud away for a while," Chegwidden said, rubbing his temples.

"Sir, are you sure that's the wisest course of action at this point?" Mac asked.

"It's the only course of action at this point, Colonel," Chegwidden said regretfully. "If he stays in Washington Bud will put everyone he cares about in peril. But if he's gone we might be able to draw this bastard out somehow."

"What about his son?" Carolyn asked.

Chegwidden sighed. "That, ultimately, is up to Bud."

"Would you be transferring Bud to a base where he and AJ could stay together?" Harm asked. Moving across the country would be a small price to pay if it meant keeping Bud and AJ alive and, though Harm would miss his friend and godson, he would do anything for the safety of the people he loved.

"No. I'm transferring Bud to a carrier. The more remote the better," Chegwidden said. "I hate to do it, but little AJ will be safer away from his father right now," he added before anyone else had to say it.

There was silence for a minute before Meg spoke again. "Since Miles has an airtight alibi for all of yesterday and early this morning, he obviously wasn't driving the car," she said. "We need a list of his associates as well as his financial records."

"You think this was a hit and not just a revenge murder?" Harm asked. It was easier to pretend that this was just another case, that the victim wasn't one of their own, wasn't a part of their tight-knit JAG family. Denial was a loyal friend that had been with Harmon Rabb Jr since he was a child.

"If it was about revenge Miles would have found a way to do this himself," Meg said. It was clear that it hurt her to be the one to point these things out. "Revenge means nothing if you get someone else to do the dirty work for you."

Jennifer sighed heavily before speaking for the first time. "Unfortunately Commander Austin is correct," she said. "Though Miles has yet to go through a thorough psych profile, from what I know about him it's obvious that he would not get the satisfaction he wants from reflected murder."

"Petty Officer Coates will be assisting us from a psychology standpoint," Chegwidden explained. Though Jennifer had yet to get her degree she had enough knowledge to point them in the right direction and, should they need professional opinions, she could help them find psychologists who would be good witnesses in court. It was the only way he could think of to get Jennifer actively involved in the investigation without relegating her to hours upon hours of searching for files and fetching coffee.

"Do you think Miles has some sort of mental or emotional deficiency?" Carolyn asked.

"I can't say for sure without more data," Jennifer said regretfully. "There may have been a trauma during childhood, abuse by someone he trusted, probably a female. Alcohol and drug abuse by either the parents or by Miles himself could also be a factor. He could be seeing the rapes and murders he's committed as payback from things that were done to him when he was younger. The women all looked alike, right?"

"They were all between five-two and five-six, blonde hair, blue eyes, light coloured skin, between 130 and 160 pounds," Harm said. He noticed that Mac had tensed up again but he didn't give it much thought.

"Harriet fits into that category," Carolyn said softly.

"Also, they were all Naval personal, but that may just be a coincidence; a matter of convenience," Chegwidden said, trying to keep the group focused on solving the case, not on their friend. Mourning could come later. First they needed closure.

The group knew what the Admiral was doing, how he was trying to keep their thoughts on the case and not on their emotions. So they turned to what they knew best.

The law.