Okie dokie! Hope everyone is doing good. A few things are in the mix, bad and good things. Bad for you, good for me. LOL!

I'm FINALLY able to take the National exam for Massage. Takes three weeks for them to do the background checks, approval thingie! And so, I am taking THE TEST (The big mama test) on Friday.

Hence, Jackie has some reviewing, studying, all that jazz to do. So, absolutely no updates on anything until all of that passes. Don't be surprised if you don't even see me responding to e-mails much. I'll be busy! I mean it's a $225.00 test so, definitely gotta hit da books!

Wish me luck guys!

And here is wonderful part 18.

Enjoy!

Jackie

PART 18 – Bittersweet Reunion

1720 Zulu
USS Patrick Henry
Location Undisclosed

It was easy to murder someone in their sleep. Slumbering victims just didn't put up a fight. Not that Vic had murdered anyone before, but he did have a few tainted moments in his past involving women. Moments that were not of the consensual kind. True, he had 'tried' to murder Harm before, but that was simply out of stupidity. Jarvis was a fool and, in kind, Vic had become his fool, something that he vowed never to do again, especially since the new SECNAV was at his side, basically holding his hand.

Still, this would be murder. . .cold blooded, premeditated. And killing a helpless person. Vic was a bit more of the hunting type, but this would do. Especially if it fit his needs and, damnit, boy did it fit them! He took a breath and put his body weight on the pillow, attempting to smother the life out of his target. He didn't expect, however, that Harm would fight back. He could feel the tension, the restraint against his actions. Vic would have tried harder, but voices from down the hall stopped him entirely.

"Commander Vukovic, how are we. . ." Doctor Winchester's voice stopped suddenly. Frankly, it was. . .odd to see Vukovic fluffing Harm's pillow. "Captain. . .You're awake."

Harm was glancing around the room, his eyes moving wildly from one person to another. One moment he was asleep, the next, it felt like the air was being sucked out of his lungs. To him, this all STILL had to be one hell of a dream. "Who are you?" He asked the doctor first, then glanced towards the nurse and finally, Vukovic. "Who the hell are you! Where the hell am I?"

Winchester walked calmly towards Harm's bedside and gave Vic a pointed glare. "Commander, the nurse will check your hand now." He literally shoved Vic out of the way, then address Harm. "I am Doctor Winchester, you are in sickbay aboard the USS Patrick Henry."

By the brows reaching his hairline, it was obvious that Harm had no clue what the doctor was talking about. "USS what?" Glancing around, he took in his surroundings and the odd colored walls in this sterile looking environment. "A military vessel?"

"Yes, Captain. . .The USS Patrick Henry is an aircraft carrier. . .I'm going to ask you a few questions while I take your vitals, is that alright?" When his patient didn't object, he took his stethoscope and went to work. "What is the last thing you remember?"

Now that was a tricky question. At the moment, he wasn't sure if this was a dream or if his adventure on the island was a dream. Maybe this was all one big ass nightmare? "The beach. . .and this couple, Ella and Connor Gerard. . . I hurt my leg. . ."

"Shrapnel wound. . .The Gerard's did a good job patching you up, but there was still some shrapnel left. . .It caused a pretty bad infection." He uncovered Harm's leg and pointed to the bandage. "You'll be fine though, get some IV's in you. . .some light physical therapy and you should be back doing. . .whatever you reservists do." He smiled, then took out a thermometer. "Open your mouth, Captain."

"Whay duyu kee culling me kaktaen?" Harm asked, holding the thermometer in his mouth, his lower lip sticking up slightly, the action causing his words to slur.

Winchester sighed. This would be the third time he'd offer his services to someone with some sort of amnesia. It wasn't quite up his alley, these type of cases irritated him. How could you tell someone who they were, if you barely knew? "You are a Captain in the US Naval Reserves. . .If you want more information that that, I'll bring your friend, Colonel MacKenzie up here."

"Conel Ackensee?"

"Captain Rabb, please refrain from speaking until the thermometer is out of your mouth."

Harm frowned. "Soryee" As he waited, Winchester checked on his leg, his slight movements causing an awful lot of pain. He winced once, twice, three times before the doctor suggested a pain killer.

"I'll give you something for the pain, Captain. .. But, it will put you to sleep."

Sleep? Yes! That is exactly what he wanted, to sleep this oddity off. Maybe I'm drunk? Harm thought with a snort. But that posed another problem, he couldn't remember drinking. In fact, he couldn't remember anything past that island nightmare.

Sarah.

There was also the woman in his dreams. . .his nightmares. From time to time she would torment him, other times, she would. . .would do what exactly? Sarah wouldn't do anything but smile and laugh. Her laughter though, it made him smile. It was soft, flirty. . . Damn, the nightmares. . .They'd surpassed the good dreams as of late. If Sarah was in them, it usually wasn't too good. He kept having visions of her kissing more than just one man. He seemed to be on the outside looking in, while she toyed with him. Damnit. He thought, shaking his head slightly. Maybe he was delusional? Maybe he was insane?

Once Winchester removed the thermometer from his mouth, Harm addressed him. "Doc, I need those pain killers now. . .I need to sleep."

Sitting three cots down, Vukovic couldn't help but watch Winchester and Rabb's interaction. Was it possible? Could it be that the great Harmon Rabb Junior didn't remember. . .anything? Well, that certainly was something to look forward to, especially if there was some permanence to it. His lips curled up in a sick smile. Damn, things had turned around rather quickly, hadn't they? True, he wasn't out of the water, not by a long shot, but if Rabb really did forget things, he could at least stop treading. For now.

1802 Zulu
USS Patrick Henry
Location Undisclosed

"Colonel MacKenzie, there's a call for you ma'am. . .You can take it here." Chief Petty Officer Clarkson said, pointing at a communication unit on the wall.

Mac stood up. "Thank you." She turned to the "grape" that had been sitting across from her, a member of the flight deck responsible for fueling and de-fueling the aircraft. "Petty Officer, give me a moment please."

"Of course, ma'am." The young man smiled, then settled in comfortably, pretending not to hear. He was enlisted, of course they had to pretend.

Taking the receiver, Mac didn't expect the person on the other line. "Colonel MacKenzie."

("Mac?" Mattie's broken voice came over. It was obvious she'd been crying. "Mac? What the hell happened? I decide to come early and find out Harm's. . .he's missing?" She hadn't spent Christmas with Harm and a slight bit of guilt had settled inside of her. Though she had fun skiing, the idea of spending time with Harm and Mac seemed much nicer. For so long she was praying for a family and now that she had one, she was acting rather ungrateful. Deciding to surprise Harm at the office seemed like a good idea, until Gunny had informed her of Harm's disappearance. Now, she sat in the living room of the Roberts' residence, tears streaming down her face. Why hadn't anyone told her?)

Mac closed her eyes and leaned against the wall. "Mats, this is. . .It's crazy, actually. . .We found him. . ."

("You did?" She squeaked out. "How? When? Where?")

"Woah, woah. . .It's a long story and I can't discuss it over this line, but he's alive. . . I swear it." Though, it is possible that he doesn't remember a damned thing. Mac quelched that thought. Everything would be fine. Yea right.

("He didn't even tell me he was flying." That was the tid bit that bothered Mattie the most. If she was his daughter, things like this she needed to know about. True, going on vacation didn't leave much room for deep conversations and such, but someone should have called.)

"Harm didn't think anything would happen. . .He didn't want to worry you while you were on vacation. . .How are you, by the way? Did you have fun?" The need to, even slightly, change the conversation was evident by the sound of Mac's voice. She didn't want to think about Harm right now, she had an investigation to wrap up.

(The sigh over the line was an indication that maybe things didn't pan out. "Ah, well. . .We broke up." Mattie sighed. "I guess it's for the better, don't want to piss off anyone at the Academy, you know? . . When will you come home?" She needed them home, to have someone to talk to. Someone who could help understand how to deal with a broken heart.)

"I don't know. Probably not until after the New Year. He's going to Bethesda for a check up. Then I suppose we'll head to San Diego. . .If you're in class, I'll see about getting you out. . .Your commanding officer owes me a favor after getting his nephew off the hook."

(Mattie smiled slightly. "That sounds fine. . .I'm going to spend a couple of days with the Roberts. . .I ah, don't have keys to your place." She said, shyly, never thinking to ask for one. "I should have asked for a copy, but I didn't want to cramp yours and Harm's style, you know?")

"You're not cramping our style, Mattie. . .Harriet has a spare key, if you want to crash at our place you can. . .And when I say 'our place', that means it's yours too. . . Just don't burn the place down." She joked, bringing a smile to her face as she heard the younger woman laughing over the line. "Listen, I have to go, but I'll see you soon, okay, kiddo?"

("Alright, Mac. . .Tell Harm I love him. . .Oh and. . .I love you, too." With that, she hung up the phone.)

Mac stared at the receiver for a moment. It was odd how those words could make someone feel so invincible. Coming from Mattie, they made her realize that, though that baby deal didn't pan out exactly as she dreamed, she still had the icing on the cake. What was that line about closing one door and opening another?

Shaking herself out of her reverie, Mac went back into Marine Investigative Mode and headed back towards Petty Officer First Class Andrew Tompkins. "My apologies, Petty Officer. I really don't mean to cut into your free time." She pressed the record button, then settled in. "Do you remember where you were on December 23 at around 1700 hours?"

"Sort of ma'am. . .More than likely, I was near one of the birds."

"Did you see Airman Arjan that day?"

Andrew nodded. "Yes, ma'am. . .I'd seen him below. There's a group of us, we're all. . .buddies. . .We tend to get together before our shift, say a prayer. . .I know it sounds stupid, but, the way things are. . ."

Mac smiled. "I don't find that stupid, Petty Officer."

"Well, that would be the first day that I hadn't seen Vinnie there. . .I mean, he wasn't overly religious, but he partook, you know?"

"Would you say he was acting odd that day?"

"Yes, ma'am. . .Actually, that whole week he was kinda out of sorts. . .But, that day in particular, he was really. . .freaked out. . .Then there was this fight he had with. . .that JAG officer. At least, I think it was a fight. . .Both of them were using pretty animated hand gestures." He made a few signs with his hands and shrugged.

At that moment, it was as if a light had turned on. Mac's eyes went wide. A lot of people, she knew, had seen the argument, however no one could really identify who it was exactly that Arjan was speaking to. The cranials and goggles made it difficult to tell. "You said the man Arjan was fighting with was a JAG officer?"

"Oh yes, ma'am."

She treaded ever so carefully, hoping that she wouldn't end up with nothing. Hoping that this man was the key. "How did you know he was a JAG officer?"

Andrew smiled. "I know how to read my ranks, ma'am." He said jokingly, then sobered as he realized that Mac wasn't kidding. "Sorry ma'am. . .I stepped out of the Island at the same time he did. . .There was a problem with my cranials, so I needed to step inside and get new ones. . .the Lieutenant Commander and I were handed the cranials at the same time. . .Hell, he even asked me to point him towards Vinnie."

"Did you witness any interaction between Airman Arjan and the Lieutenant Commander?" Jesus, this was one of the few people who knew, without a shadow of a doubt that Arjan and Vukovic were arguing. Most of the others saw the altercation, but couldn't be certain that Vic was involved. Thinking ahead, she knew who needed to testify if they went to trial.

"Yes. . . The Lieutenant Commander waved Vinnie over. . . They chatted a bit and then he grabbed Vinnie and yanked him towards him. . .It was clear they were arguing. . .After that, I went to speak to Vinnie and he just brushed me off." He became somber for a moment, his brain working over time. "Ma'am. . .Is it possible that the Lieutenant Commander had something to do with Vinnie's death?"

"Why would you say that?"

Andrew shrugged, then leaned in. "Vinnie wasn't the type to kill himself."

Mac nodded. Over and over again she'd heard the same testimony, that Vincent Arjan was a top notch sailor, one without a black record, and yet he was acting oddly the day of Harm's accident. "Thank you Petty Officer. Dismissed." Waiting for the Petty Office to leave, she then adjusted the sling on her arm, wincing at the pain. Getting shot just wasn't any fun. At least it wasn't her leg, that hurt a hell of a lot more. Feeling a pair of eyes on her, Mac glanced up to find the doctor that had tended to her the night before at the hatch. "Hey, doc, coming to check on me?" She grinned.

"No." Doctor Missy Evans stepped inside and made her way over the table. "But, while I'm here. . .May I?" She took a seat right next to Mac, then pulled off the sling, setting it on the table. "Hurts, don't it?"

"Somewhat, yes. . ."

"And you haven't taken your meds." It wasn't a question, this Marine, she knew would be difficult to deal with.

"No, I need my head clear for this. . .I'll take it later, when I get a chance to rest." Holding her breath, she watched as Evans exposed the skin slightly. "How's it looking?"

Evans smiled. "Good. . .You should recover in no time. . .Minor physical, I'd say." She lowered the bandage and helped Mac place her arm back in the sling. "Whenever you stop by, make sure to get the bandaging changed." Standing, she walked across the ward room, took a cup and filled it with decaf. "There's some good news. . .About Captain Rabb." It was almost amusing to see the woman's normally steely eyes alight with. . .what had to be, love. "He's awake. . .Well, at least, he woke up for a bit. . .Winchester pumped him full of pain meds so he's sleeping again."

Mac couldn't find the words with which to respond. She opened and closed her mouth several times, words not formulating.

"I'd say, stop on by in an hour or so. . .He should be up then." Evans finished the coffee, placed the cup on the table and nodded towards Mac. "Well, good luck with the investigation, Colonel."

"Tha. . .Thanks." Settling into the chair Mac took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "He's awake." That was a start, a good start. Now, all he had to do was remember.

Finishing some more interviews had given her that hour that Evans had suggested. Expectantly, Mac headed into sickbay where she instantly saw Harm, awake and alone. She stepped closer to him, catching his attention. There was a look that he gave her, a furling of his brow and a slight smile that raised her sprits. "Sarah." Harm said out loud, then tried to seat himself a little more upright in a cot that barely contained his six foot four frame.

To Mac, it was like stepping into a dream. "Harm." She took the final steps to his side but as she went to throw her arms around him, he pushed her back. "Harm?"

Waking up in a ship was taking a toll on him. It was either the medication, the pain or the fact that he hated sea going vessels, but something was making him nauseous. The medication that Winchester had given him had, at least, stopped the vomiting, but his head wasn't in the game. It didn't help that the vision of his dreams was now at his side. His dream or nightmare was very real. "Who are you? Why do I keep seeing you in my head?" He pointed towards his head. "Ever since I was on that island. . .I see you when I close my eyes."

Dejected, she took a hold of one of the metal chairs and pulled it right to his bed. She took a seat, her eyes trying to lock onto his, but Harm was determined not to let her. Frowning, she tried reaching for him, to touch his hand and maybe spark something more into him, but when he pulled away, she felt like her heart had been ripped out of her chest.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Sarah MacKenzie. . .I'm a Colonel with the United States Marine Corps and a lawyer for JAG. . .I head up the JAG office in San Diego: Joint Legal Service Southwest."

"Where are Ella and Connor?" Though they were strangers to him, their hospitality and, yes, friendship, was something to hold onto within the turmoil of his life. "They. . .they helped me. . . I think."

"They're also onboard. . .I saw them earlier today. . . They're speaking with the CIA at the moment."

Harm's eyes went as wide as saucers. "Are they in danger?"

"No. . .I mean, there may be charges filed against them at some point, but for now they are cooperating. . .helping destroy the terrorist cell."

That statement confused him, but there was something else that Harm was concerned about. It began with the ease in which this woman was discussing things with him. "Why do I feel like we know each other?"

It was tempting. Very temping indeed, to begin discussing their current state of relationship. But, maybe it was more pertinent to start at the beginning. "We've known each other for. . .fifteen years. . .God, that sounds so long. . .Sometimes it feels like yesterday that we met."

"W-w-wait." He raised his hands up signaling for her to stop. There was a little something that was nagging him. "Who am I? Connor and Ella, they said something about me being. . .military?"

If possible, Mac's heart sank just a bit more. "Yes. . .Your name is Harmon Rabb Junior, you're a Captain in the US Naval Reserves. You used to be a JAG lawyer. . .That's how you and I met. . .But, before that, you were a Tomcat pilot."

Harm made a face, then chuckled. Pilot? "Pilot? Look, I hate planes." But the look on Mac's face said otherwise. "Don't I?"

"You love planes. . .You even own a vintage Stearman." She decided to omit the fact that the plane was named 'Sarah.'

This seemed to confuse him even more. He never knew that people in the military could have dual roles. "So I am a lawyer and a pilot?"

Shit. Mac thought, admonishing herself for giving away just a little too much info. It was difficult enough to try to tell him who he was without adding in the trauma of his ramp strike and all of the other zillion or so things that made up Harmon Rabb Junior. "Okay, let's start at the beginning. . .You went to the Naval Academy. From there you went to flight school, you joined a squadron and flew for the Navy. . .Then you decided to change your designator and came to JAG. . . A few years later, you and I met and we were partners up to nine years ago." Technically, they'd stopped being partners the moment he decided to leave JAG and re-join a squadron, but she didn't want to confuse him even more. The details, she swore, would come later. "Then you received a promotion and with it came a billet in London, which you took. . .I wound up in San Diego with my own promotion and billet. . .Somewhere along the way you got tired of the law and opened up a private investigation firm with a former co-worker of ours. . .So, you moved to San Diego and opened up the office there. . .Now, you are still in the Navy, but only as a reservist. . .As such you are the commanding officer of a squadron."

Okay, all of that he understood, somewhat. There were a few words she used that he wasn't familiar with, but that was alright, he got the gist. "How did I wind up on that island?"

"A few weeks ago, you and your squadron were ordered to this ship, the USS Patrick Henry(,) to fly a classified mission. . .From what I understand, your plane malfunctioned and you ejected into the ocean and wound up on the island."

Harm nodded. "And I suppose I was rescued and that's why I am in this tin can?"

Mac chuckled at his tin can remark. "Yes, exactly."

An uncomfortably tense silence settled between the two. It was that particular feeling that made Mac realize just how different things really were at the moment. There was no two ways about it, she and Harm were strangers now. "My name. . .What's my name again?"

"Harmon Rabb Junior. . .You were named after your father."

A slight smile tugged at his lips. "I have parents?"

"Yes, your mother Patricia and your. . .step father Frank." At the questioning look in his eyes, Mac swallowed down the lump at her throat which always appeared there whenever she thought of Harm Senior. "Your father. . .he was shot down during Vietnam. . . your mom remarried several years later."

"Oh." The smile was completely whipped from his lips. "What about me? Do I have a wife? Kids?"

Wife. Way back when she would have given her soul to be his wife. Now, she just wanted him and it didn't matter how the package was labeled. In a sense, they practically were married. Lord knows they'd gone through more tribulations than any marriage could survive and yet, here they were. "You've never been married. . .You do have an adoptive daughter, Mattie. . .She's attending Annapolis and wants to be a pilot like you."

The thought of having a kid, adoptive or not, gave him a bad taste in his mouth. However, the thought of not being hitched, that was a hell of a lot more appealing. Harm couldn't see himself married, period. "What about you and I? Have we. . .?" Purposely he let the question trail off as if he actually knew the answer. He didn't, of course, but there was something to the way that Sarah had entered his room and something to the way she tried to touch him. If his dreams, his good dreams, had anything to say about it, they had been intimate.

Mac, on the other hand, was drowning and not in a welcomed way. "This isn't an appropriate thing to discuss aboard this vessel." Then again, she wouldn't be surprised if the President of the United States knew that they'd finally hooked up. "But, yes. . .You and I are a couple. . .we've been living together for several months now, actually." For the first time since this whole ordeal began, she smiled genuinely. The way in which he came to live with her wasn't exactly ideal, how could it be when his house had been blown to pieces. Nevertheless, he had come to her. And, when she asked, Harm had 'officially' moved in with her. "It took a while for us to get together. . .We cared for each other too much to try, I guess."

Now that made absolutely NO sense to him at all. "But, we're not married, right?"

"No. We're not married." Why was it that Harm seemed to breathe a sigh of relief? Maybe a change in topic was in order? "How does your leg feel?"

Harm shrugged. "Pain meds got me numb at the moment. . .I think you can drop a Buick on me and I wouldn't feel it." He smiled, but it wasn't quite the flyboy smile that was his trademark. It was different, reserved.

There were even differences in the way he carried himself. If Mac didn't know better, she would say this was a totally different man. "I'm sure you'll do a little therapy for it."

"What happened to you?" He asked, outstretching his finger to point at Mac's arm. "You go to war or something?"

Well, it wasn't a war, but it may as well have been. "I was in the search party that found you, Harm." She didn't care to elaborate on exactly how she found him. That whole conversation just didn't seem feasible. 'Oh, by the way, I have this mysterious power, along with a near-perfect sense of timing, to find you anywhere in the world. Ain't that cool?' Nope, even without the blatant sarcasm, it just sounded too WEIRD. "We took some fire and I got shot covering the Marine which carried you onto the helo."

"Helo? What the hell is that?"

"Helo is a helicopter. . ." Damnit, he really didn't remember a thing. She figured, at least, it would be like last time. The information was a little skewed, but at least he remembered the majority of the people around him. Except Renee, but maybe that was a sign from God? She smirked at the notion. "Is there anything that you remember? Anything at all?"

Harm closed his eyes and laid his head back against the pillows. He was willing himself to remember, but the only thing that came to mind was a nightmare. "Nothing except. . ." He trailed off, unsure of how she would interpret what he was about to say. For all he knew, this woman and he didn't get along in reality. Hell, maybe she was an ex? With a killer body like hers, he could just imagine. . .

"Except what?" Mac was hopeful to hear even a shred of a memory. That would be something to work on, a place to start. She wasn't prepared, however, to know she'd been, mostly, in his nightmares.

"Except a nightmare I keep having. . .It involves you. . .One moment you're smiling at me, laughing. . .The next, you're kissing another guy and then pointing a gun at me. . .aiming to. . .my heart." Metaphorically it made some sort of sense in his twisted mind. She went to another and shot him through the heart, it was all a part of the game of love. Thing is, when someone leaves you for another, there isn't that look in their eyes. Mac had the look, one that spoke of pain and love. There was also an understanding, like she knew what the dream was about.

"I don't know what that's about." She lied knowing full well that the man he saw her kissing, was Webb. "I mean, you and I have hurt each other before, but friends, lovers, relatives. . .they all have done that as well." Mac wondered if he'd had that dream before, when he still remembered who he was. Damnit, had she really hurt him that badly? Yes, they'd discussed it, but it was so difficult to put into words what your feelings held. With this mental picture, she understood, truly – Shot through the heart. Damnit, she didn't deserve him. Maybe this was all punishment?

"When are we getting off of this tin can? I'm anxious to get home. . ." Harm stopped for a moment. He didn't have a home. Well, he probably did, but how do you have a home when you don't know where that home is? ". . .wherever that is."

"San Diego, California. . .Your home's with me." At least, she hoped it still was. "We're going to go to Bethesda, they'll be able to check yours and my injuries better. . .From there, I'll request that you be sent to Balboa and. . ."

"Balboa?" He interrupted, a grin in place. "As in Rocky Balboa?"

"Heh, ah, no. . .Balboa as in the Naval Medical Center in San Diego." She pointed out with a sigh. Every second that passed, she realized, this was real. "Then, I guess you can come home."

Home. San Diego. It made no difference to him because no matter what anyone said, he knew there was no where on Earth that would really feel like home to him. There was one plus side though. "At least I'll have something beautiful waiting for me." He smiled, but again, it wasn't his usual smile and it didn't have its usual effect. In fact, Mac barely held his eye contact. "Is there a problem, Sarah?"

Sarah? Okay, so it's not like Harm hadn't ever called her that but. . .there was something. . .weird about the way he said it. It was almost as if he was trying to seduce her. "It's Mac. . .You call me Mac."

His brow rose in amusement. "What kind of a name is Mack for a woman?" That comment was sexist, but he didn't care. Frankly, Harm rather liked that little shiver he'd seen when he called her Sarah.

"Mac is short for MacKenzie, my last name. . .You've called me 'Mac' since we met." And that was something she didn't want to change. Sarah was something he called her in private, during intimate moments.

But this Harm didn't get it because he couldn't recall even a miniscule piece of their fifteen year history. This Harm only saw a pretty woman who, for reasons he couldn't explain, he felt drawn to. "But, Sarah is a much more beautiful name than Mac. . .Mac's. . .masculine, and you sure as hell ain't masculine." He smiled brightly at the slight blush which crept on her cheeks. "Ella and Connor were calling me Mack, though I figure it had to do with the dreams I was having about you."

"Yes, that's what they said." Raising her good hand, she placed it on her other arm, it was starting to hurt again. She took deep, slow breaths willing the pain to subside. Right now, the last thing she needed was any type of medication that would hurt her ability to think on her feet. "Is there anything else you wanted to know?"

There was plenty that he wanted to know, he just wondered how much of it was true and how much of it she was fabricating because she could. "The way you asked that, it seems like you want to leave." At the moment, anything anyone told him was touch and go.

Mac grinned impishly. "Truthfully, I may need to pop a few pain pills which means I'll need to take a nap. . .That doesn't mean I want to leave." But, she did want to leave, not him, of course, but the situation. She just wanted her Harm back. "Is there anything else you want to know?" Course there was, that was a stupid question.

"A lot, but I guess we're not going to be able to go through it all now. . . It being inappropriate and all." He was mocking her and Mac knew it. Maybe he was even baiting her to say something more.

"I want to talk to you, but, this really isn't the time, Harm. . .I'm investigating Vukovic and. . ."

Harm glanced at her, his expression uncaring and dispassionate. "Vukovic. . .Yea, that's the guy that was fluffing my pillow when I woke up."

She couldn't have been more shocked if possible. "He was in here?"

"Well, yeah, and the doc told him to leave and come back and he did. He left a little while before you came in." He smiled genuinely. "Seems like such a great guy. . .And you said you were investigating him?"

Oh no. He'd already gotten to Harm and twice! What the hell was going on with Vukovic! If he was a suspect to Arjan's accident, how the hell could he be allowed to walk around the ship freely? "Listen, you get some rest. . .I'll see about getting you out of this. . .tin can." Mac stood up and leaned forward, placing a kiss on his forehead. "Rest, okay?"

The kiss left him dumbstruck. "Okay, Sarah." He watched her leave, noticing how reluctant it was. Harm could swear that maybe she didn't want to leave him after all. Damn, that was a complete change from minutes earlier when he was sure she wanted to bolt. "Sarah MacKenzie." He grinned stupidly, wondering how difficult it would be to get into her pants.

Back in the wardroom, Vukovic sat patiently by the communications unit, waiting for his shore to ship to be patched through. No doubt, the SECNAV had something to say about his predicament. She wasn't pleased, but just how much hot water would she stick him in? He just didn't think that Hewitt would be yelling at him from the moment he picked up the damned receiver, especially since she'd yelled at him once before.

("Gregory, you are a fucking incompetent idiot!" Livid wouldn't even begin to express just how angry she was at him. When he'd contacted her about covering his ass, she literally thought it was a joke, or at best, some silly little investigation that he was having trouble with. She never thought things would go this far.)

"Woah, hey. . .There's no need to talk to me like that, okay. I was just doing what you told me." He countered with what he believed to be true.

(Hewitt sighed deeply over the line. Men, all of them were just pure trouble. "I told you to keep Rabb busy. . .I never told you to kill him!")

Vic pulled the phone away from his ear while grimacing. The woman had a set of lungs on her, that's for sure. "Well, when you say the words 'get him out of the picture' most people would assume you mean. . ."

("I NEVER said those words.")

Really, he was going to have to keep official records of things. "Yes, you did."

(Alright, so she MAY have mentioned those words, but she figured he just didn't have the stomach to do anything really sinister. And it was obvious that he didn't as he picked someone else to do it for him. "Fine. . .Fine, I did. . .So what now?")

"What now? What now? Make the damned investigation go away! Mac keeps looking around. . .she's already found people who SAW me fighting with Arjan!"

(She could do that and easily, but the stories of her interfering with the good of the Navy were growing. "You should have never toyed with this. . .When you said you were messing with the plane I always assumed you were doing something to keep him on the Henry while I got my hands on MacKenzie. . .Now, you managed to stick yourself in the middle of this. . .NIGHTMARE. . . and reunite Rabb and MacKenzie." Why couldn't he just get it? All she needed was Mac, without complications. Damnit, ever since his involvement with Theodore Jarvis, Vukovic was like a loose cannon.)

Ah, but he held one ACE in his pocket. "They're not together. . .at least, not exactly."

("What do you mean 'not exactly'?")

"He can't remember a thing. . ."

("What?")

"Amnesia. . ." He dragged the word out, grinning evilly as she 'oooohed' over the line. "I was listening in and, I'm thinking this is pretty permanent. . .Yup, couldn't be any better if we planned it ourselves." Yes, no matter what, Vic knew that this would work out to their favor. He kept getting the right signs – every time a door closed, a window would open. It wouldn't be too long before Sarah MacKenzie was theirs.

His. Eventually, she would be his.