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In the Director's waiting area, Maj. Cassidy arrived, with her cover tucked neatly under her arm and looking every bit the part of a well groomed, starched and polished Marine Corps officer. The Director's assistant, upon seeing the Major, got up and went to the doors of Director Sheppard's office, "Go right in, Major. The Director was expecting you."
Maj. Cassidy instantly chastised herself for letting time get away from her and was angry for being late. When she entered the office, Director Sheppard looked up from her desk with a somewhat startled expression on her face. She looked at her watch and a slight blush came to her cheeks, 'Gosh, I am so sorry, Major. I guess the time got away from me."
"No, Ma'am, it is I who should be sorry. My tardiness is inexcuseable and-." The Major is cut off by the red-headed Director.
"I'm not sure what clock you are looking at, Major, but my watch says it is precisely fifteen minutes before our original appointment time." The Director stood up and walked around to the other side of her desk, and then took a seat, motioning for the Major to do the same. "I only asked you to arrive a little ahead of the SecNav so we could chat about your time here, so far."
The Major relaxed a small amount once she realized she was indeed not late. "Yes, Ma'am." And the Major took the seat opposite the Director.
"So, I hope Jethro hasn't been too hard on you this week. I know he can be somewhat abrasive to most people, but I had hoped that your being a Marine would help to keep his feathers a little less ruffled." She flashed a knowing grin at the Major.
Before Maj. Cassidy could answer, the Secretary of Defense walked into the room, unannounced. "If you're talking about Gibbs, that's seems highly unlikely." The Major was instantly on her feet and standing at attention in full salute, her cover still tucked neatly under her left arm. "Stand down, Major. This isn't the Pentagon, and I am not 'officially' here." The Major returned to parade rest, but did not relax in the presence of the SecDef. He crossed the room and took Director Sheppard into a friendly embrace, "Good to see you, Jennifer. And glad to have your political expertise on this little project of ours."
"Always good to see you, Sir. And I think we have the perfect team in place for this 'little project.'" The Secretary and the Director took their seats, and left the Major standing. Once she realized the Major had not sat back down, Director Sheppard also noticed that there was a distinct shortage of chairs and so she called into the waiting area, "Louise, can you bring in a couple of chairs, please?"
The Director's assistant entered the room carrying two chairs, "Already on the way, Ma'am." She handed the first chair to the Major and the Secretary directed her to sit.
"So, we're just waiting for that ungrateful lackey of mine, then are we?" The Secretary of Defense joked with a wink.
"You won't be waiting long, Sir. At least, not as long as it takes you to make a move in that chess game you and the Commandant have running." In walked the Secretary of the Navy and the Major was once again on her feet in full salute. "Ah yes, well, let's dispense with that shall we, Major. No time for all that protocol you Marines are so fond of today." And the SecNav motioned for her to return to her seat as he took his own.
"Maj. Cassidy, the SecNav, the Director and myself are here for a status report. The Commandant would have been here too, but he had a briefing with the JCS this afternoon." He paused only a moment to turn his gaze full on the Major by shifting in his chair, "So, we all heard about the night marker discovery… Good catch, young lady… But where are we on getting this madman sorted out, Major?"
The Major swallowed hard and took a deep breath to get her nerve up for talking to these very important and powerful people, "Sir, I have given Special Agent Gibbs my preliminary assessment, based strictly on the evidence. When I return to my workstation, I will begin putting together my profile of the UnSub and should have the full analysis in front of Special Agent Gibbs by tomorrow afternoon, Sir."
The three power brokers looked at each other and shared a private communication of their satisfaction with the Major's report. The SecNav was the first to speak, "Didn't I tell you those blasted Fibbies wouldn't have anything on this crew, Don?"
The SecDef laughed at the private joke, "Yes, yes… But the point of this exercise is to actually SOLVE the case before handing it over to Fornell and his team. And in that vein, Maj. Cassidy?"
"Aye, Sir."
"What do you think of the chances that this team will have a suspect in custody before the end of the two weeks?" All eyes were now on the Major and she was feeling the pressure.
Taking another calming breath before she spoke, the Major answered the question with perfect honesty, "Sir, I would be willing to bet my clusters on Special Agent Gibbs and his team having a suspect under surveillance by the end of the week, Sir."
The room erupted with the laughter of the Secretaries and the Director, and the Major was worried she had overstepped her bounds.
Shaking his head to punctuate his delight, the SecNav was again the first to speak, "I told you, Don… When you work with good people, it always outweighs technology and numbers." And he slapped his thigh to add further weight to his claim.
"Well, that might just be the case, Jim. So, why don't we let this Marine get out of here and back down to business… That is what Marines do best, isn't it Maj. Cassidy?" The SecDef added a wink to the end of his question, trying to let the Major know that she had done well, and that they were done with her for now.
"Aye, aye, Sir. Among other things, Sir." The Major stood up, brought her right arm up in a salute that was returned by both Secretaries and she about faced right out the doors.
The Director regained the attentions of the Secretaries, "You know, gentlemen… It really isn't fair playing with a stacked deck, don't you?"
The SecDef leaned back in his chair with a satisfied look and a large grin growing on his face when he answered her with a glint of evil in his eyes, "Who ever said I played fair, Madame Director, was a damn liar." And the trio restarted their conspiratorial laughter all over again.