A/N: I'm not trying to jump on the "metoomovement", but be fair warned that this chapter does get slightly political. Harassment, and Discrimination of all kinds goes on in this world every day, and many people (both men and women alike) are too afraid to speak up for a variety of reasons. Whether it is in the military, in school, in the workplace, or anywhere else. It doesn't matter your gender, ethnicity, religion, age, etc., hatred affects us all. Sorry for the rant, but this is just where the story took me as I was writing it. Once the case is over, the happier times will return, I promise.
Aboard the C-130
Somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean
0200 Hours
Neither Harm or Mac is very happy to see their unexpected guest. And the night was going so well, even with the twist of events that led to them heading out to a carrier, instead of making out on Mac's couch. Mac had envisioned catching up on some sleep, laying on her Flyboy's shoulder, even with other military on board she didn't think it would have been an issue. Now, with the SecNav here, there was no way that was going to happen. She wouldn't get any sleep, nor would she be leaning on Harm.
Harm is equally discouraged, when he first hears the voice of the man who coined him "Harmful Rabb." He idly wonders what he is doing here. Yes, this is a high-profile case, but the Admiral would have informed them if he knew the SecNav would be watching this closely. His mere presence is borderlining "Undue command influence."
As the SecNav looks at the Colonel and Commander, he immediately notices their rigid posture at his unanticipated appearance, "I'm sure you are both wondering why I am here. Don't worry, it is not my intention to follow the two of you out to the Sea Hawk. Nor is my objective to interfere with your investigation. I received a call from the Commandant of the Marine Corps, after General Schaeffer called him, and gave him an earful on the situation. Apparently, the two of them served together in the past, and have developed a camaraderie of sorts. The Commandant expressed his wishes to have this case resolved as quickly, and discreetly as possible."
Mac nods for him to continue. She too, has experienced similar types of relationships with others she has served with, Gunnery Sergeant Galindez immediately coming to mind, as well as a few men from her days in Bosnia. But none of those compared to her relationship with Harm. She would go to the ends of the Earth for him, and then some. She hesitates for a moment, trying to conjure as diplomatic a response as she can muster, "I understand, Sir, but you could have told us this via a phone call, after we arrived on board. Why hop a transport in the middle of the night?"
The SecNav continues, "After I got off the phone with the Commandant, I placed another call seeking some additional information. I tried to call AJ to inform him of my discussions with the Commandant, but I was unable to reach him. I was near Andrews already, and I knew from my earlier discussion with the Admiral that the two of you would be on this transport, so I figured I could just relay the information to you directly. I want you to be fully prepared for what you are walking into on that carrier, and AJ didn't have all of the pertinent information yet. Besides, I could use a cup of good British tea with the Ambassador when we land in London."
Harm's has conflicted feelings about this. On one hand, the SecNav circumvented the chain of command, which will piss Admiral Chegwidden off to no end. He isn't buying the excuse that AJ was unreachable at all. On the other hand, having all the info ahead of time is definitely helpful, provided the info isn't just rubbish coming from someone wearing rose colored glasses, which he suspects might be the case. He inquires, "What else do we need to know?"
Secretary Nelson lowers his voice to a level that only Harm and Mac can hear, "This information is very close hold. After the call from the Commandant, I did a quick check with the NCIS director to see if there were any other incidents that they were aware of that hadn't required JAG involvement. Apparently, there have been several similar cases reported across the fleet, prior to this one. None of which were from the Sea Hawk. Rumor at NCIS, is that there is a 'Boy's network' out there that deems female personnel on their ships is both unnecessary, and distracting. This group is seeking to remove female personnel from being deployed with them, one way or another. Until now, all of the allegations have been minor, most considered pranks, and nothing that would require a full investigation. However, if you put it all together, there is a definite pattern of behavior. NCIS had just started connecting the dots when this case was reported. If Captain Johnson hadn't informed JAG, they would have."
Mac's eyes widen at this little tidbit of information. "But Mr. Secretary, female personnel have been deployed on ships for quite some time now, why do you think this has all of a sudden become a problem?"
The SecNav sighs, "Colonel, I wish I knew. Perhaps it has been going on along, and those involved were just too afraid to report it."
This simple statement makes Harm's blood boil. He has nothing but the absolutely highest respect for females in the military, except maybe Lt. Singer. Even where she is concerned, it isn't because she is a woman, it's just because she is a witch. Maybe it comes from being around two extremely formidable women during his childhood, his mother and grandmother. Either one, or both of them, would have had his hide if he dared to disrespect a member of the opposite gender. He can't count the amount of times that Mac has saved his six in some not so ideal situations. He is sure that more than a few enlisted personnel could attest to the fact that she is a force to be reckoned with. He actually believes that she is stronger than he is, and god forbid anyone cross her, as hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Trying to keep his temper under control, Harm asks, "You don't think that this has anything to do with woman wanting to cross the last frontier and end up servings on submarines do you?"
The SecNav raises his eyebrows, "I didn't even consider the timing, but I guess that is a plausible theory. Maybe more women are coming forward with allegations of prior harassment, as they see further opportunities open up to them, whereas before they just stayed quiet. Maybe the men were ok with a handful of spots being occupied by women, but when they become integrated mainstream into almost all fields, such as pilots, and Captains, they began to feel threatened. I really don't know all the details of the motivation behind this. You two should be able to flesh it out during your investigation. If I had known some of this information earlier, I definitely would have asked for you two to do the investigations. You both are highly respected by both genders. We will definitely start with the high-profile current case, but I think we will need to backtrack through the other information that NCIS has been able to collect and look at those as well. I don't need to tell you that discretion is of the utmost necessity."
Mac replies, "No, you don't. We will handle this investigation and any other subsequent ones as expeditiously, and as quietly as possible. But, we do have to report to the Admiral on our findings."
The SecNav looks her directly in the eye. and says, "No you don't, you need to report them to me."
Mac looks at him incredulously, "With all due respect, Sir, I have an obligation to report my information to my Commanding Officer. Additionally, I have too much respect for the Admiral to leave him out. There is no way he would be involved in this at all. I will NOT keep him out of the loop on this, and if that means charging me with disobeying a direct order, you can start the paperwork for the court martial right now."