Hey Guys!
Sorry for the delay, didn't realize I had this in my inbox, betaed and ready
to post! Shame on Jackie!
I'm a chappie and a half away from being done. The story will last EXACTLY
to Number 30.
Then I plan to take a break, post something that I have in my PC for the
Ezboards FOJ virtual JAG season while I vacation/deleted/re-write "The Webbs
We Tangle Ourselves In" which may or may not have a different title.
So here we go!
Enjoy!
PART 26 – The Best Laid Plans
Harm's spoon paused half way to his mouth, his brow furled and that 'Rabb in the Headlights' look came on with full force. Had he been eating something, chances are he would have choked. "No, Mac. No way."
A minute earlier she had returned from the stateroom with a crazy look in her eyes, on full blown, Marine Mission mode. "Yes, Harm. . .It'll work."
Of that he wasn't quite sure. "Who's going to watch your six if I am on some carrier, Mac?. . . How the hell would I be able to live with myself if. . ."
"Harm, would you let me finish." She shook her head, why was it that men never really seemed to listen or let women finish? Grabbing a handful of Oyster crackers, she poured them into the soup. Mac's idea sounded risky: doctoring military orders to send Harm back out to a carrier, ASAP. "She doesn't have to know that the orders aren't real." She pointed out with a grin, then blew on her spoon before eating some of the soup. "If she thinks you are gone, then that will take the pressure off of you. . .I can just fake falling apart."
Okay, so he got it now – her plan to have him go away was just a rouse, nothing more. Still, they had one little problem. "If they're watching us now, Mac. . .Chances are they'll be waiting on the tarmac for me to hop onto a transport."
Immediately, her face fell. Alright, so she hadn't thought it out that far. "I didn't think about that." Sighing, she dropped the spoon into the bowl and leaned back. She suddenly wasn't hungry anymore.
"Although. . .One of the newer guys, while we don't look exactly the same, he's around my height, my build and has dark brown hair. . .shoulder length dark brown hair. . .but, I am sure we can ask him to cut it as a favor."
Liking the idea again, Mac pulled the bowl back to her and grabbed the spoon. "That could work. . .I mean, if I can get them to bring a COD, you'll have to wear the cranials, right?"
Harm nodded. "Which means, I won't be recognized. . ." It was amazing how quickly their spirits could be lifted with such a small window of opportunity. High spirits meant more ideas. "You know? We need to get someone high profile on board. . .High profile but with an ability to keep their mouths shut."
"Any idea who? All of my high profile contacts, while nice when dealing with legal matters, would love nothing more than to see me fall on my face with all of this." She chewed thoughtfully on an oyster cracker, then swallowed it down. "Maybe someone on the Hill. . .A woman that we've helped in the past." Mac hinted, hoping he'd catch on.
"Bobbi." He grinned at Mac. If there was one person he knew that was powerful and had a penchant for grinding axes, it was Bobbi Latham. Furthermore, she'd made Senator now, or at least, that was the last thing he'd heard. Thing was, would she still want to talk with him? "Let's just hope she doesn't hold grudges forever."
Mac shrugged. "She was your girlfriend, I figure that the good times alone should. . ." She trailed off suddenly, catching his wide eyed look and that spoon, once again, stopping an inch from his mouth. "What?"
Harm dropped his spoon into his bowl and sat back. Out of all of the things that he'd believed, never had he thought that people. . .that Mac. . .Oh Boy. "Is that what you thought?" God, the notion of he and Bobbi getting together was nauseating from the moment they had their first dinner. He had intentions of going after her, this was true, but the second that every conversation turned from generic subjects to politics, Harm found his head spinning. Then there was the detachment factor – Bobbi couldn't have a multifaceted relationship with someone working with her. It was probably one of the reasons why she and Sturgis broke it off as well. Not to mention, Bobbi was a little too larger than life for his tastes.
Sighing, she took another swallow of soup. "Harm, you and Bobbi were quite cozy when I. . .look, anyway, what does it matter? It's past." Mac tried to rationalize it – their past lovers were just that – past, and God keep them there. In any case, she wasn't the last bit intimidated by Bobbi before and she sure as hell wasn't now either.
"Woah, woah, woah. . .For the record, Bobbi and I. . .never. ."
"Never?" She interrupted with a smile which widened as he got flustered. "Harm, really. . ."
"Mac, really. . .Bobbi and I were never an item. . .It didn't go past one kiss and dinner. . . She was. . .was."
"A control freak?
He nodded. "Something like that. . ." Then there was another thing which had amazed him. One thing that had kept him up that night even though his bed was empty. "I never understood why you two never got together." Bobbi was fishing, of course, that was one of her many talents. But, to be completely fair, it wasn't as if he'd never thought about it. He was just playing it safe then. Damnit, they'd wasted so much time. "Let's lock her down and go to bed, Mac. . .We're going to need all the rest that we can get."
March 29, 2010
1230 Local
Rabb and Galindez Investigative Services
Oceanside, California
The welcome Harm received upon heading into the office brought his mood up slightly. Their secretary had decorated the whole place with streamers, balloons and a pretty, hand made sign that said 'Welcome Home.'
Home. He smiled at the notion and then quickly remembered their current situation. Home wouldn't be home without Mac, at least not anymore. She was a part of him now, almost like a fiber that made who he'd become. Yet, there was so much to do and so much that could go wrong. "Sir, there is someone here to see you, says he's an old friend."
"An old friend?" Harm shrugged, maybe Vic came to make a stand? It was doubtful, he was pretty sure that Vukovic didn't have the guts to confront him head on.
"Hey buddy." The low baritone brought Harm's head up sharply. Standing at the door wearing his Naval whites was one Sturgis Turner. "I guess I should have made an appointment." He joked lightly, waiting for the initial shock to wear off of his friend. When Harm didn't outright respond, he tried a different approach. "May I come in?"
"Ah. . .S-s-sure." He shook his head slightly, then stood up, came around his desk and shook Sturgis' hand. "How are you?"
"Good, but I think the real question you want to ask is 'why are you here?'" Sturgis grinned, then slipped into the chair across from Harm's desk. "This is a nice place. . .Mac told me where I could find you. . .Looks like I might be stationed over here. Cresswell has some old blood back in JAG HQ, I wasn't really fitting in."
As far as Harm remembered, Sturgis always had a problem fitting in. It was the same at Annapolis and sure as hell didn't change when he joined JAG Ops. "I heard you did a great job with Mayfield. . .You did Mac good."
"Yeah, it was a good case. . .Not exactly the first one I wanted, but sometimes it's better to get tossed into the deep end." He remained silent for a moment, the tension thickening so much it threatened to choke his life. Sighing, he leaned forward on the chair, balancing his cover on his knee. "This is difficult for me, Harm. . .When you left Falls Church, we really weren't on good terms."
"Gee, wonder who's fault that was." Harm said, his tone taking a dangerously territorial form. "You were an ass, Sturgis."
Holding up his hands in defense, he said, "I deserve that and I agree. . .But, did you ever stop to wonder why?"
"That was your own doing, pal. . .When you were acting JAG, you were running the place like a Tyrant."
Ah, he knew this would happen, that the past would be dredged up in its most dirty form. But, Sturgis wasn't there to fight or to prove who was right or wrong. He just wanted his friend back. "Harm, friends, even good friends, have a habit of running over each other. . . You and Mac, both did some crazy stunts when I was acting JAG. . .Because I was your friend, you thought I would bend the rules. . .And I wasn't going to do that. My career had been on the line a year prior, eyes were on me. . .Eyes were on our office. . .I'm sorry it got personal. . .And I'm even more sorry I hung you out to dry during your investigation. . ."
Harm took a breath. Alright, so some things Sturgis had said were right on the money. "I pissed you off, didn't I?"
"Yeah, you did. . .Look, you and I have been good friends for many years. . .I want to put this all behind us, start new?"
It probably wouldn't have been that easy to give in, had Mac not told him of the conversation she and Sturgis had back in Falls Church. They all had changed, Sturgis as well. Maybe it was time for another chance? "You know, I've grown up a bit in the last few years." The corners of his mouth turned up to a smile, "Yea, man. . .we can start fresh. . .clean slate, what have you."
"Harm." Gunny stepped into the office, stopping abruptly, when he found Sturgis sitting in the chair. "Commander Turner, it's been a long time." He'd met the man once when he'd returned to JAG ops just to visit. "I thought you left the Navy?"
Sturgis grinned, "Yea, but once it's in your blood, it's in your blood. How are you, Gunny?"
"Doing pretty good. . .Then again, I got a good business partner." He turned to Harm and grinned, "About what you needed, I got Mike over at your place now with his nephew, the computer geek."
"Computer geek?" Harm said with a raised brow, the feeling that he'd been gone forever just settled in a bit more.
Gunny nodded. "Yea, Mike's nephew is this computer wiz kid. . .he spoofed up some of our gadgets, created new ones. . .He's willing to be our tech guy while he finishes college. . .Anyway, he and Mike are going to make a full sweep of the house and put a few jammers. . .Mike was thinking of pulling a surveillance system in as well and have various mini screens in the house so that you can keep tabs on the cameras."
Warning bells were going off in Sturgis' mind. If so much protection was needed, something was wrong. That made sense, he figured, especially when he considered the distressed look on Mac's face when he'd met with her earlier. "I am about to pry, but, what's going on?"
Harm and Gunny glanced at each other almost as if they were leery to let someone in on another secret. When he'd arrived at the office, after a little 'welcome home' party, he brought Gunny and Mike into his office and discussed all of the details. Both men were willing to cooperate without any coaxing. Mike Benson, being an ex-cop, was always looking for ways to catch the bad guys. Gunny just had this innate sense of protecting to those he cared for, he was totally in. All that was missing was his look-alike which was on an investigation in La Jolla. "Did Mac talk to you about anything?"
"She told me to take the day to get settled in and to get ready to work, that's about it." Sturgis had seen that odd look on her face and while he did want to ask about it, he had a feeling that the office wasn't exactly the best of places. "She did seem preoccupied today."
"That would probably be an understatement." Harm scoffed. Part of him wanted to be in JLSS watching her six 24/7. He just didn't trust Vic around her. "Did you happen to bump into Vukovic?"
Snorting, Sturgis rolled his eyes, "Vicpuke you mean? Yes, I did. He's still his cocky little self. Although, it appeared he was just a bit giddy today. . .He didn't think much of me joining JLSS and was quite verbal to Mac about it. She put him in his place though."
"That's my girl." Harm grinned. Pointing at the door, he waved Gunny to close it. "Close the hatch, Gunny. . .I think it might be a good idea if we bring Sturgis up to speed."
The whole plan was pretty straight forward. First, they would remove all of the buys from his and Mac's house and replace them with new ones for them to track any unlawful entries. Harm was sure that, by the end of the day, Hewitt was likely to call him and he would state, in no uncertain terms, that any negotiations between the two of them would only be accepted if she agreed to cut Mac a little slack.
The next part of the plan would be a nasty, public breakup with Mac and his subsequent 'request' to head back out to sea. He would take that opportunity to plant his double on the transport while he settled into a disguise in order to watch over Mac without detection. Mike and Gunny would quietly investigate Hewitt and Vukovic, trying to come up with some dirt that would be of use.
"I'm also trying to see if I can get Bobbi in on this." Harm said, knowing it was a rather uncomfortable situation for his longtime friend. Sturgis' breakup with the former Congresswoman, while downplayed, had hurt him severely.
"Considering her advocacy for women in the military and her vehement dislike of improper command influence, I'd say she'll be more than happy to jump aboard." Hey, even if she did rip his heart out and stomped on it, the woman did have her merits. He shrugged at Harm's confused expression. "Hey, she's good at what she does. . Now, how are you going to meet up with her without them figuring it out?"
Ah, that was the catch 22, Harm's face fell slightly. "I haven't thought about that yet. . .I'm not too keen on going to Washington."
As it always was with the Rabb and Galindez staff, someone always had a good idea. This time, it belonged to Gunny. "I think we should tempt her to visit the lovely city of San Diego. . .and quickly."
1300 Local
Joint Legal Services Southwest (JLSS)
San Diego, California
"Ma'am the files on the Holmes article 32. . .Looks to be a slam dunk. . ." Vukovic trailed off when he noticed that Mac hadn't acknowledged him. In fact, except for Turner's change of billet, he hadn't really seen her reacting much to anything. "Ma'am? Ma'am?" He came around her desk and placed a hand on her shoulder, shaking gently. "Mac?"
She jumped, startled then stared at him, her expression not the usual tough one he'd come to admire. No, she seemed lost. "Vukovic?" Mac glanced at him as if it were the first time she'd seen him. Her reaction was truly unsettling.
Vic nodded. "Yeah, it's me. . .Excuse me for prying, but what's wrong?" His hand was still on her shoulder, squeezing gently. He was surprised she didn't have him on the floor yet with her heel on his face.
Mac sighed slightly, then brushed an imaginary tear from her eye. "No-nothing. . .Just. . .I'm fine."
"You don't look fine." He continued to probe, knowing that the moment she turned on him, this momentary gentleness would be over. "I know you and I have issues. . .but, I want to be your friend. . .You can trust me."
And that was the scary part, in some sick way, Vukovic could be trusted. Maybe not entirely, but Mac trusted that he would buy her self-pity act which was a way to set in motion the fake break up between herself and Harm. "Can I trust you?. . .Can you trust me?" She whispered, her voice shaky with the emotions that she was faking.
Kneeling in front of her, Vic took her hands with his own. "I know you're out to nail my ass to the wall, but yeah, I think I can trust you. . .I know you're just doing your job."
"I'll be fine." She daintily slipped her hands out of Vic's then turned the chair to the side. "Just haven't been able to sleep much. . .I'll be fine." Mac reassured. "What was it you wanted to speak to me about?"
Vic took the file from the edge of the desk and placed it in front of her. "It's the Homles file, ma'am. . .I found something interesting. . .It's not looking so slam dunk for the defense anymore." He grinned.
"Good, I'll leaf through this once I get a chance. . ." Groaning, she pinched the bridge of her nose
Vic noticed her slight peeked appearance and, if he remembered correctly, she hadn't left the office at all that day. Which meant, he was sure she didn't have lunch. "Ma'am, have you had lunch?"
"No, why?" She tried not to sound too expectant and went back to slight ignorance.
He smiled, "Well, I haven't either and it would give me a chance to tell you about the case. . .Plus, I know you are prosecuting me and you haven't done a follow up interview. . .We can do it then?"
Not wanting to seem too unlike herself, Mac gave him a considering glance. "Are you trying to sway my case, Vic? Because it won't work."
Vic took a step back, putting on his most sincere looking expression. "Colonel, ma'am. . .I just want to make sure that the case is fair. . .and I just want to take a friend out to lunch to cheer her up."
"I don't need cheering up." She said defensively. Mac glanced at him, then sighed, seeming to relent. "But, I do need food, my blood sugar is low. . ." Wavering slightly, she pinched the bridge of her nose with one hand again and with the other waved towards the door. "Go get a car from the motor pool. . .Rabb's got my Vette." She said the last part with a slight bitterness that wasn't lost on Vic. "I need to speak to Commander Roberts. . .How about we head out in an hour?"
As much as he tried, Vic couldn't hide the smirk. "Will do, ma'am." When he left the office, Mac swore he was practically skipping. Good, she thought. Now all she had to do was call Harm and let him know that they were headed out to lunch. It was time to put their little 'break up' act into full effect.
Grabbing the cell phone he'd bought at the Seven/Eleven, Mac punched in his number and waited for an answer. "Hey, in about an hour I'm going to lunch with Vic."
(Harm barely had a chance to get his bearings. If anything, he figured she was calling to commiserate their frustrations, to check in on his progress. This was a little quicker than expected. "Wow, that's a bit early. I thought we were going to wait a week?")
"That was the plan, but he noticed I was feeling down today. So, I decided to milk it for all it was worth." She couldn't help but grin and it carried in her voice. "I brought Bud, Harriet, Jen and Mayfield up to speed. . .The rest of the staff will be in the dark."
("I talked to Sturgis, actually, he's standing in front of me now with an odd expression.")
"Oh yea? How'd he take the news?"
("How'd he take the news?. . .Probably the same way the gang at JLSS did. Shock, horror, mild amusement." He chuckled slightly. "Anyway, let me get out of here. . .I think it might be better if we cause a scene at JLSS than the restaurant. It might seem fishy if we wound up together at the same place.")
Mac groaned loudly. The last thing she needed was to cause a scene at the place, but he was right, this was the best way. "Alright, but go easy. . .Last thing I need is more scuttlebutt."
(He knew that better than anyone, but he also knew that public displays tended to seal the deal better than anything. "I promise to be gentle, Colonel. . .See you in a bit.")
"Hurry."
Forty minutes later, she went searching for Vukovic when a certain Naval Captain/Private Investigator grabbed her arm. "Hey beautiful." They were never the type to do the public display of affection in the office, so he kept himself in check, only kissing Mac on the cheek. "Wanna head to lunch?"
Mac glanced around nervously. "I can't. . .I have a few cases to go over with the junior staff. . .rain check?"
Harm stared at her as if she were asking an odd request of him. "Mac, it can't be that important. . .JLSS can run without you. . .C'mon, Sturgis and Bud can join us and we can trade JAG HQ stories, it'll be fun."
Almost as if she'd willed him to transpire in front of them, Vukovic came out of his office whistling Foreigner's "Waiting For A Girl Like You." He came to a dead stop five feet away from where Harm and Mac stood. An evil grin spread across his lips, no doubt just the very notion of Mac having lunch with him would piss Rabb off. "Colonel, are you ready?"
Harm stared at the other man as if he were another life form. "Ready for what?" His tone of voice was dangerous, menacing and promised bodily harm. "Mac? Ready for what?" He stated impatiently, wrapping a hand around her bicep which he pulled to the side, away from Vic.
"Harm. You're hurting me." She stated in a voice that promised a dishing of Marine punishment for non-compliance. "And not that it's any of your business, but we're going to lunch so that. . ."
"Why the hell are you going to lunch with him?" Harm interrupted, his hand still wrapped around her bicep and showing no signs of moving any time soon. "The guy is a creep, Mac."
"Harm, don't make a scene."
He kept his voice low, but not low enough. Anyone standing at least twenty feet from the bullpen could hear the conversation without much effort. "Don't make a scene? Don't make a scene? After what he did you're going to lunch with him?
Mac sighed deeply, then jerked her arm out of his grasp. "I haven't questioned him again, alright. . .I thought it would be best to do it out of this office."
"This is some shit lawyer tactic, Mac. . . Were you even going to tell me about it?"
"Since when do I need to tell you about my ongoing's during working hours? Last I checked, I was the commanding officer around here and the only person I need permissions from is General Cresswell."
"I'm your boyfriend, I need to know." He got closer to Mac, the heat from the argument, making it just a little too believable for his liking, but if it worked…
Sturgis took this time to shove an arm between his friends, pushing Harm away from Mac. "Harm, you're being an ass."
"You're on her side too, Sturgis?"
Pushing Harm backwards, Sturgis' hands came to his shoulders as he tried to be the voice of 'reason.' "Hey, it's not like that and you know it. . .This isn't the place. . .Save it until you get home."
"Whatever, let's just get out of here, Colonel MacKenzie is busy WORKING." Harm threw Sturgis' hands off of him, then stormed out of the office, almost running straight into Mayfield who was walking in from the break room.
"Harm, wait!" She stormed after him, her high heels clicking frantically on the tiled floor. Mac managed to catch up before he'd even left JLSS. They were still in plain sight of everyone. "Captain Rabb!" She tried his rank, cringing slightly as he came ramrod straight. When he turned around, the expression on his face was almost comical. Alright, so they couldn't help but follow orders when someone used that commanding tone. "Look, this is my job. . . There have been plenty of times that you've gone with a client to a business lunch. . .Before you left, I do remember bumping into you at Starbuck's having coffee with a rather attractive, rather rich, rather CLINGY blonde. . .And I do recall how much gentlemen prefer blondes."
He was tempted to say something about her involvement with fellow officers. Rather, a senior officer, but he couldn't do that. Harm loved her too much to tarnish her name again. Instead he moved in so close that only Mac would hear the next words. "When I start to move away, slap me. . .pretend I said something horrible." The look in her eyes told him that she didn't want it to go that far, but it needed to be done if it would seem real. "Mac, just do it. . .It's just another charade. We've done a few already. It'll work."
When he pulled away slightly, Mac wound up and struck the left side of his face with her right hand. The definite 'crack' sounded through out the office and both were sure that a few gasps were uttered. "You jerk."
Mustering his most pathetic look, he turned away from Mac and then made his way to the double doors. His hand grasped the handle as he turned to glance at her over his shoulder. "I'll see you at home."
Mac watched him leave, sensing an odd sadness behind it, though it was all a sham. She knew why though and this charade was just the beginning of it. It was going to be difficult to turn away from him even if it meant bringing Hewitt and Vic down. It was going to zap what was left of her strength.
"Nothing to see people, get back to work." Sturgis said, noticing that everyone was still, very much, routed in place. "That's an order, people."
Vic, who had been rooted in place during the whole altercation, cautiously made his way over to Mac who hadn't moved a muscle. "Ma'am. . .Ah, maybe lunch isn't such a hot idea?" As much as he wanted her, Vic knew a thing or two about women and being pushy wasn't going to cut it. Especially not with a woman like Mac.
"Commander, go and get the damned car. . .I can't be in this office at the moment. . .I just need to grab my purse, I'll meet you outside. . . Don't tempt me to make that an order." She said with a fake playfulness that he caught onto, which had been her intention. As Vic headed out of JLSS, she made her way back to her office, passing those that knew of the scheme and couldn't help but grin. "I believe Commander Turner told you all to get back to work. . .Or do you four want to get charged with DDO?" Magically, Bud, Jen, Harriet and Tali dispersed, each of them heading in varying directions. She would apologize later. For now, she had a date with the Devil's son.
