A/N: Hey all, back by popular demand – the latest chapter of Full Throttle. I'm trying really hard to get a chapter of each story out every two days. I'm not having a particularly busy week so hopefully I can keep the chapters coming. You know, hopefully.

Thanks go out to all reviewers: Bite Beccy, Bail's Other Daughter, Steelo, Starryeyes10, Kitty X, martini1988, QueenOfAces, froggy0319, alix33, mjag, moonlight, nursejay80, AnMaDeRoNi, snugglebug, jaggurl, Anne, ficchic, dansingwolf, Radiorox, cbw, wishwaters, Rocket Rain, sgcgirl52, tlk29, JJScottishGirl, Blueangel, aj, French-navy girl, Marge, Jane, Tina Frank, highplainswoman, mac AND harm fan, Ali Baba, super ducky, tumblebuttons, AB, Abigiale, macandharmlover, jazzy, vhosek malacath, Britainy, MartiniMac, HighHeel Shoe Lover, Sirus 745, Fan, Pissed off Poet 1, southernqt, BrittanyLS, sugar230, K, Ilovemyselftoday, eggy weg, xobabygurlxo, Reni-Maniac, Cille, ForensicsFreak1988, HMtogether4ever, MaritzaCarmichael, Lara783, janessab, tizy, June, vrbinkaCZ, Cherise, DD2, Bekka, Lani-LoveNPain, Dessler, mommie, daisymh, Laura, confused, basketball babe8, and Strawberry Kittens!

Note: this chapter begins in Mac's POV.

To Render Relieved

"But Jake, you have to come," I whined over breakfast, pouring milk into my cereal of corn flakes and peanut butter (cravings, I tell you. CRAVINGS.)

"Aw, come on, Mac," Jake whined back (whining REALLY doesn't suit him by the way). "I have things to do, places to go . . ." I shooting him a pointed glare. "A hospital's really not my scene . . ." he pleaded.

"I've told you three times!" I exclaimed exasperatedly as I licked the peanut butter off of a few flakes. "We're not going to the hospital! I mean, we're going to a clinic . . . that's located in a wing of the hospital."

"Same difference," Jake retorted, flipping open the newspaper. "I will be suffocated by white."

I let out an exasperated sigh. "It'll only be for a half hour any way! Will thirty minutes put such a serious cramp in your social life?"

Jake stares at me begrudgingly with a reluctant sigh. "What time?"

"Two thirty." I smile at him as I get up from the table, putting my empty bowl in the dishwasher. "Again . . . thanks, Jake."

Jake flashes me a melt-to-a-puddle-on-your-kitchen-floor kind of smile and shrugs. "It's no sweat, Mac. And to be honest," he winks at me. "This is one of the funnest assignments I've ever been on."

I elbow him lightly in the stomach. "And what kind of fun were you up to for eight hours last night, huh?" I stare at him pointedly.

And suddenly there's a huge shift in emotion. Jake's eyes cloud over but his grin still remains plastered to his face, though now it gleams with artificialness. "Oh, hanging around. A little work. Nothing you should be concerned about," he winks at me.

But I'm not ready to relent yet. "Aw, come on, Jake . . . you know you could trust me."

Jake's eyes shift to meet my own, and he stares at me intently for a minute and then diverts his stare almost as quickly as it had fallen upon my eyes. "No, no . . . it's nothing. Nothing that needs attention."

I drop it – for the moment. "Look, um – I've got to get to work. Wish me luck."

Jake looks at me curiously as I rinse my hands in the sink. "Luck for what?"

I exhale slowly. "I've got to talk with the Admiral about my . . ." I pause in lack of words, "situation."

"You mean you haven't told him yet?" Jake asked me incredulously. "You've had weeks!"

"Well, actually – rules say I have to inform my CO within thirty days of my receiving the information," I responded stiffly and informally. "And today is . . ."

"The twenty-ninth," Jake shook his head at me but at the same time grinning ruefully. "I suppose you've now taken the time to make a speech and all that."

I avoid his eyes. So I DID take the time to . . . come up with a few words. So what? Jake flashes me an arrogant smile. "Well, best of luck."

"Thanks," I mutter, grabbing my suitcase and heading out the door. "Remember, Jake. Two thirty."

"You can count on me," he replied breezily, following me out the door and into his car. And I just couldn't help wondering, as we both drove away – in opposite directions – where Jake was spending all his time . . . and who he was spending it with.

0846

28 Belleville Drive

Clay's POV

"What are we going to do, Webb?" Vera's insistent whisper filled my ears with a hollow buzzing sound. I waved her voice off with my hand.

"Hush, I'm thinking," I muttered back to her. We stood in the hall, my body tucked in the corner of the wall between the kitchen and then entrance. Vera stood next to me, her body pressed up near mine so as not to be seen by either Catherine or Harm. Her proximity was driving me insane.

"Did you have a good sleep, Harm?" Catherine's voice wafted through the open door and filled our ears. I could hear the breath catch in Vera's throat. Both our bodies tensed.

"Yeah . . . yeah, it was all right." Harm's voice sounded agitated. "You?"

Vera's dark eyes flickered for a moment to mine. Our thoughts tied almost instantly. In my head I imagined Catherine's mouth opening, her blue eyes glinting with excitement and then – Vera leapt out from beside me and practically threw herself into the room.

"Good morning!" The cheeriness in her voice was very obviously artificial.

"Morning," Harm replied in his usual monotone.

I paused a minute in my safely out-of-view corner of the wall. Should I go in there? Does Vera need back up? And then a picture of Vera's face loomed before my eyes, her dark and wild eyes shining and her fiery auburn hair clashing with her tanned skin tone. Who the hell am I kidding? Catherine's the one that needs back up.

"Hey, Catherine?" Vera's voice is cheery to the point of dangerous. "Could I, um, talk to you out in the hall for a minute?" A long pause and then, "We'll just be a minute."

I can practically hear the shrug of Catherine's shoulders. "Sure."

There's the sound of a body getting up from a chair, and the soft tapping of footsteps coming my way. And then . . . my hand snakes around her mouth from behind and I press Catherine's body close to me, moving her slowly but efficiently down the hallway. She couldn't scream if she wanted to. Vera, Catherine and I shuffle into Vera's room (the closest down the hall). I pause a moment, looking for sounds to indicate that Harm's close and listening but find none so I release my clamped hand from overtop Catherine's mouth.

"What the hell is your problem?" she spurted immediately. "Is this how you treat your guests? By kidnapping them from your own kitchen?"

I wince at the stupidity the words she utters. Behind Catherine I can see Vera shooting me very smug glances. I don't know what she's feeling all high and mighty about. The more ignorant Catherine is the more dangerous she is to the mission. And then I inwardly cringe when I realize that's the exact point Vera was trying to make about Harm.

"Catherine, listen to me," I speak slowly and soothingly, keeping direct eye contact with. "Vera and I believe –" I'm cut off by an irritated glance from Vera. "Well, we have reason to believe that you may have, um . . . overheard, perhaps, a little bit of our conversation . . . um, say last night?"

Catherine blinked. "And what, may I ask, was the topic of this supposed conversation?"

Vera rolls her eyes from behind Catherine. I sigh irritated. For the not-so-bright reputation that Catherine has earned, she certainly puts up a good front when being interrogated. Perhaps that's how she got her job at the CIA. I must say, some people have been wondering . . .

"The topic was Harm and you know it," Vera snapped from behind Catherine causing both our heads to turn. "And we know you overheard, okay? We saw your bedroom door shutting, so cut the innocent crap."

"Easy, Vera," I said slowly, effectively cutting Vera off in the middle of her verbal barrage. I turned back to Catherine, "But really, Cat. You can't tell Harm. This would only complicate the mission further."

Catherine cocks one eyebrow up in a way that almost reminds me of Mac. "The mission? You're sitting in a house day after day doing NOTHING . . ." she pauses as she listens to the echo of her own words. "Well, actually, you're watching the yogurt expire . . ."

Vera tries her best not to roll her eyes but only manages to keep one eye normal while the other shoots up. I grimace, "Catherine, Harm's LIFE is in danger. No matter how . . . uneventful you think this mission is – THAT is what you have to keep in mind."

"And telling Harm that Mac's pregnant will somehow jeopardize this mission?" Catherine asks, her voice cutting through me like ice. I can see Vera's expression from behind Catherine. It reads just what she wants it to read. And her point's not entirely pleasant.

"Look, Cat – it's hard to explain," I begin but am cut off by stern looks from both Catherine AND Vera. And suddenly I feel very confused. Last time I checked wasn't Vera on MY side?

"You know how Harm is!" I retorted angrily. "You remember Paraguay! He acts on EMOTIONS. And those emotions are going to get him killed . . . or someone else. If he finds out about . . ." I gesture with my hands. "Then he'll go nuts. He just WILL. I'd love to tell him. I'd love it if he and Mac got together and had a whole bunch of kids, white-picket fenced house and all, okay!" I can feel the scream in my throat and my body works the best way it can to calm myself. "But it can't happen . . . given the circumstances, it just can't."

I can feel a long stretch of silence beginning to enfold but Catherine's never been one for the pause of effect. "And you're sure you won't tell Harm because you're actually worried about his safety – or you're still in love with Mac?"

And just like that, I feel everything crash around my ears. Vera whirls around, "You were in love with Mac?"

"Vera – " I begin but I'm almost immediately cut off.

"Didn't you know?" Catherine seems surprised. "He and Mac went out for a year?"

Vera flashes me an incredulous look. "A year? And I only find out now?"

"Well, I thought – " I began but once again I'm interrupted.

"Yeah, she only broke up with him after Harm died," Catherine chats away to Vera. "He was a mess. You should have seen him. Moping around and everything. We had bets on who would break down first – you know, around the office – Mac or Webb. Clay over Mac or Mac over Harm."

Vera whirls around. "And you knew about this and didn't tell me?"

"I didn't know they were taking a freaking office poll!" I exclaim, obviously upset. But no one seems to be particularly caring about my feelings at the moment.

"It all began when Mac and Clay were in Paraguay," Catherine rambles on despite my horrified glances towards her. "I thought FOR SURE that Harm would get Mac because . . . well, he saved her and all. He saved both of them, really. But I guess he managed to screw it up once again. Harm's never been one with words, you know. But for whatever reason Mac just went right into Clay's open arms. And . . . it lasted about a year. Their . . . thing. And then without Harm – it just all fell apart. But really, that wasn't ALL that long ago. I wouldn't be surprised if Clay was still in love with Mac. She was the best thing that ever happened to him." She sends me a quick and hurried glance. "But I mean that in the best way possible, Clay."

A long pause follows Catherine's absurd proclamation and then it happened, just as I feared. "Well, seeing as you obviously can't keep your emotions out of this case," Vera whispered slowly, but not without intent. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to relieve you."

Words catch in my throat. "Relieve me?" I choke out. "You can't relieve me."

Vera's eyes are cold. "I can and will. YOU put me in charge of this investigation. Don't you remember? So it's my investigation to lead . . . and I'm afraid, Agent Webb, that your services are no longer required."

I feel my eyes bulge. "No longer required?" My voice grows steadily louder. "Fine then! To hell with it all! Tell Rabb. You'll have a full fledged RIOT on your hands. But what do I care? I'm RELIEVED." I turn to go but stop in the door way. "And one more bloody thing." I turn around to meet Vera's eyes. "Don't call me up when you've lost control."

Vera's voice is ice. "You can be sure, I won't."

And it was just like that. I was RELIEVED. I stormed out of the room, pulled my jacket off the hanger in the front closet and slammed the door behind me. I didn't care any more. Living with Vera had been unbearable anyway. Two women and Harm. No, I was much better in the safety and comfort of my own apartment.

Same time

Same Place

"I can't believe he didn't tell me," Vera remarked hotly, pacing around the room with her arms crossed in front of her. "I mean, this was a mitigating factor to the mission! How could he just leave something out like that?" Vera's voice was broken. "I mean, don't I deserve to know?"

Catherine's blue eyes looked up at Vera imploringly. "For the good of the mission, or for personal reasons?"

And for once, Special Agent Vera Azhad had no answer.

A/N: Guess what happens next chapter? Come on, just take a guess . . . okay, I'll tell you. Yes, Harm finds out. Now don't get all excited on me here . . . okay, yeah – feel free to. And if I can – I'll try and get a chapter of To London with Love out tomorrow. If possible. Review and let me know what you thought about this chapter.

Highplainswoman: I totally know where you're coming from on the dialogue front. I, personally, love great dialogues. I mean, a plot is wonderful – and seriously, you can't have a good story without a solid plot – but dialogues, almost etch in the reality of the story. My favorite, however, happen to be rather pointless dialogues that make you laugh. Just yesterday I was reading this Meg Cabot book and these two people were having a discussion about Italian bathrooms in which the woman entered and found to her great astonishment a hole in the floor. And I can't even remember what they were saying that was making me laugh so hard, but I was sitting in bed at like two in the morning reading the book and laughing my head off. And I suppose that's what you really remember about a story in the end – what got emotion out of you. And for me it's always the dialogue.

vrbinkaCZ: hey, you're back! How was horse camp? My cousin's headed off to some part in northern Ontario to do horseback riding. She really loves it. I don't mind it, honestly. I took horseback riding lessons for a few years before deciding writing was my thing. And I really love coming home to a thick load of chapters. Like, when I was in India, I couldn't check my email for about three days at a time – and when I checked I had like thirty author alerts. It was then and there that I decided I would narrow everything down to my top ten. Yeah, lot easier now. Lol

Radiorox: ha ha, scruffy motorcycle guys! Lol, you and my friend are totally in the same boat (Steelo, if you're reading this – well, you ARE). Boy, Harm would just flip if he found out Mac was pregnant! Of course, I've got to pen down that reaction (good luck to me). I mean, obviously Harm has never been an emotionally passive person (cough, cough – Paraguay) but you know Webb . . . he wouldn't want to take the shot. Not that Webb's not a risky person (cough, cough – Paraguay). Ooh, do we see a pattern here? Lol

BrittanyLS: Wouldn't we all! Lol, thanks for reviewing. Hope you liked this chapter.

Southernqt: omg, you have an imagination that could compete with mine! Lol, I like your idea though . . . you should use it for a fanfic of your own or something. And if not – can I have it? lol

Alix33: I totally know what you mean on the D/H front! I mean (presuming you have now read HBP) wasn't Draco TERRIBLE! I mean seriously . . . I felt like setting the Avada Kedavra curse on him. Omg, you sound just as bad as me when you said you reread all the books over the weekend. I did the week it came out! My friends say I'm terrible that way – whenever a new book of a series I like comes out I feel compelled to reread the entire series before the new installation. But seriously! Glad to know someone's in my boat. (oh yes, and in Canada we do call it the Philosopher's Stone)

ForensicsFreak1988: Yeah, I finished HBP the day it came out (I sat all day in the car and read (oh yeah, I wasn't driving)). And – I mean, I too have some pretty strong thoughts towards the book – but I think that, yes, JKR did get a little creative with this book but that IS what sets her apart from other authors, isn't it? She captures the imagination and when something bad happens or something good or sad we're right there alongside her with our corresponding expressions (by the way when (I'd say you know who but then people reading this response might think it's someone else) died, I like screamed and I didn't feel ready to finish it until I'd had a big glass of milk and two Oreo cookies). And you're not pathetic in rereading it. I mean, I haven't done that with HBP (yet) but when the Order of the Phoenix came out – I reread that almost immediately.

marineJAG: thanks, and I enjoyed HBP very much! Seriously, from the moment it was delivered to my doorstep (I bet you're husband would be jealous if he was reading this (3 hours – lmao)) I just read and read and read until I'd finished it (1:43 in the morning of the seventeenth). lol, hope you enjoyed the book.

Dansingwolf: I know exactly what you meant. My friends weren't done for the longest time, and most of them STILL haven't finished reading HBP – and it's been four days! Only two of my friends are finished . . . (in the beginning it was none – I finished the day it came out). And I wanted to scream about the ending to someone but no one was there so I pulled my sister over and started yelling to her about it but she didn't really care. She's never opened an HP book. As for the whole train thing – seriously, it's really a coincidence. I mean, I had to take a LOT of trains while I was in India (we must have zigzagged all over the country) and after reading like twenty Agatha Christie books, I was just DYING to write something so I opened up my notebook and started scribbling (oh, in the AC novel that I was reading right then – some guy had faked his own death (of course, that was by choice)) but then I thought how cool it would be if Harm did that. But I knew that wouldn't happen unless he was forced into it . . . so then it all just started coming together. And I didn't know many Arabic surnames so when I saw one on the newspaper in front of me – it just sort of made sense. And then I thought why not name Vera after someone from the book that had given me so much inspiration? Vera Azhad. I know it sounds very . . . JKRish, but honestly I wasn't even THINKING about her when it happened (oh, and did you know that Walt Disney also created Mickey Mouse in a train too?). And – you know – I've never been much on the popular side of political discussions (referring to the abortion thing) so I won't dive much into the depths of that – but considering the lengths at which Harm and Mac were willing to go to to be parents (their five year deal) it seemed to feel right to make Mac keep the baby. I mean, there would be obvious complications (calling an assassin a complication's really rather an understatement, don't you think?) but . . . Mac's strong, and I truly believe she'd be able to work it out (I mean, she's got Jake . . . lord, help her). I know where you're coming from on the Vera/Webb moments. No matter how . . . I don't know – how much they bring you in – it makes a total difference if it was Harm and Mac. Because we know them a lot more, I guess. And you can almost tell what they're thinking – because you're so used to their characters. And because we like Harm and Mac a lot more, of course. Ah, dansingwolf, once again your review reply's the longest! I don't mind though. I could have predicted that . . . you know, with all my superb divination skills.

Abigaile: But isn't it a lot more fun to think one thing and then find out it's another? Lot's of twists and turns . . . it keeps a story going. But don't worry – Harm will find out next chapter. He really will – and that'll be a good surprise, don't you think?

KittyX: No problem, glad you liked last chapter. Was this soon enough for you? I'll try and post faster – but I'm also juggling to stories. How's every other day sound to you?

Bite Beccy: oh, well – I'm so sorry. I'll refrain from mentioning Harry Potter in my author's notes. Omg, I don't know what I would do if I was in your place! Not being able to read Harry Potter and all! I hope you get to read it really soon. You'll like it.

XloveNpainX: that's one thing I would pay to see – Clay informing his little minature-selves that he'd tell them what was in the coat closet – but then he'd have to kill them. Oh, yes, Clay and parenting is something I would definitely love to see. And do you REALLY think banana and jellybeans would go with cookie dough ice cream? I mean, I can sort of see the banana but . . . jelly beans? I, personally, have never been a big jelly bean fan but that strikes me as an awful clash. But I really wouldn't know – I mean, you ARE the food person. LOL

Maritza Carmichael: did I update fast enough for you? No? Oh well, I'll try my best to update every other day. Hope you liked this chapter, though!

Jaggurl: I personally love to say words backwards. And of course, Clay just has to have the stupidest sounding name backwards. Notyalc Bbew. It so works. Lol, hope you liked this chapter.

Froggy0319: lol, can't wait for Harm to find out, can you? Well then I suppose you won't be disappointed with the next chapter. Hope you liked HBP. I know I did. I won't tell you any more than that though . . . just incase you haven't finished it yet.

Daisymh: hope you liked this chapter! Thanx for reviewing.

Tizy: Speckadent . . . you know, I really like that word! Seriously, I'll take it into my vocabulary. I mean, my language is not exactly composed of . . . well, normal words, so speckadent should fit right in! Oh, I feel bad for your daughter . . . I mean, I'm always using made up words, but at least I knew they were made up! Lol – hope you had a wonderful time reading HP. I know I did.

Snugglebug: Yeah, Jake's really sweet about the whole Mac-pregnancy thing. Jellybeans and all! But yeah . . . Mac and Harm will always be thinking about each other – until . . . well, yeah, the reunion. And poor Harm doesn't even KNOW yet! Lol