A/N: Ok, last part with the SecNav, at least for now. I'm not a big fan of him either.

Chapter 25: My Name is Not Ben!

When everyone is settled back in the office, Mac offers the coffee, and the condiments, to the SecNav. He waves his hand, "No thank you, Colonel, I prefer tea."

Harm murmurs, "Guess you should have brought some scones."

Mac shoots him a death glare. She tells the Secretary, "I'm sorry, Sir. Would you like me to ask the Petty Officer to bring you a cup?"

Secretary Nelson grumbles, "No thank you. If you two could stop arguing like a group of schoolgirls for five minutes, we could just get this over with. I do not want to be late for my tea time with the Prime Minister."

Harm mutters under his breath, "Only in London, everywhere else in the world "tea/tee time" means golf." He raises his voice, and gestures toward Mac, "No worries, Mr. Secretary. Ben here will ensure you are on time."

The SecNav inquires, "Ben?"

Harm says, "Yeah, you know 'Big Ben,' the clock here in London that is known for its impeccable accuracy with time, and has multiple bells that chime every fifteen minutes. Mac has an internal clock that could rival it any day of the week and twice on Sundays. Although I've never heard her utter a 'cuckoo' on the hour. Unless of course daylight savings time kicks in, then it makes her think twice."

The SecNav arches his eyebrow in question, not really believing a word of this.

Mac supplies, "10:34 local time, Sir."

While Nelson in glancing at his watch to verify her skills, she nudges Harm in the stomach with her elbow, "My name is not Ben!"

The SecNav responds, "Impressive, Colonel."

Mac gives a small smile, happy that the earlier tension between them has dissipated. However, she is contemplating hurting Harm later.

Harm hits the intercom button, and starts dialing the Admiral's cellphone, gesturing between the handset and Mac.

As it is ringing, she groans, "Ugh, Why me?"

Harm shrugs his shoulders, "Because he likes you better."

Harm replies with an "OOF", as she jabs him again right below the ribs, just as you hear "Chegwidden" on the intercom. Harm surmises he will have to wait until later to tell her he would like to ring the bell on her clock, or at the very least knock it out of whack. Any injury he might sustain would be worth it just to be with her.

Mac clears her throat before speaking, "Good morning, Sir. I just wanted to let you know that the Commander and I, as well as Secretary Nelson, have landed safely in London, but will be delayed in our travels out to the carrier."

AJ's eyebrows travel up to his hairline. What in the hell is the SecNav doing in London with them? Well he can't very ask that question at the moment. He cautiously responds, "I see. What's going on Colonel?"

Mac decides to start with the case before explaining their delay, "Apparently the SecNav received some additional information after you briefed us last night. We didn't find this out until he boarded the transport."

The Admiral replies, "Let me guess. This case might not be an isolated incident?"

Harm and Mac drop their jaws.

Nelson responds with an irritated tone, "That would be correct, AJ. How did you know that already?"

Chegwidden inwardly grins. He loves it when he can pull one over on that asshole. He replies, "The Director of NCIS called me earlier this morning. They have a team on route to Norfolk for another case that might in fact be linked to this one. Thus far, the only suggestion that these cases may be related is that both of the accused were at the Academy at the same time. In and of itself, that is nothing that would hold up in court, and could very well be just a coincidence, but they aren't taking any chances. Director Vance has other agents at Headquarters sifting through various other military and civilian cases to see if they can find any other corroboration to these incidents."

Nelson squints his eyes, thoroughly perturbed that AJ possesses more information than he does. He is going to have a word with the Director when he returns to Washington. He crudely replies, "I see."

Chegwidden continues, "I want you two to tread lightly on this investigation. We don't know if there might be other players involved, so watch your sixes. I don't want a repeat of what happened on the Watertown."

Harm and Mac reply immediately, "Aye, Aye, Sir."

AJ adds, "If you happen to hear any scuttlebutt related to similar incidents, I want to be informed immediately, and I will pass that information up to those who need to know."

Harm and Mac simultaneously respond, "Understood, Sir."

AJ asks, "Mr. Secretary, is there anything else either my officers or I need to be aware of?"

Nelson offers a curt, "No."

Chegwidden replies, "Good. Now, why are you delayed in London?"

Mac offers, "Mechanical issues with the transport, Sir. They expect to have the issue resolved so that we can fly out of here in the morning, weather permitting."

The Admiral sighs, "I'm going to have Tiner check to see if he can get you to Germany on a commercial airliner sometime today instead. Time really is of the essence here. Do you have a place you can grab a few hours of rack time in case he is successful?"

Harm replies, "Yes, Sir. A corporal here made hotel reservations for us, and informed them that we would be checking in early."

AJ uses this as the perfect excuse to be able to talk to his officers alone, without the SecNav's interference. He responds, "Ok, when you have checked into your rooms, buzz Tiner to see if he found anything, and I will pass any additional information on, if anything has changed."

Harm and Mac both understand the unspoken message. They simultaneously reply, "Yes, Sir. Anything else?"

Chegwidden replies, "Not for me, is there anything else you need Mr. Secretary?"

Nelson replies, "No. I'll call you later after I meet with the Prime Minister, AJ. I will be heading back to the States this evening. If you hear anything else from Director Vance, please leave a message with the Embassy for me to call you."

AJ is very thankful that Nelson won't be accompanying Harm and Mac to the carrier. He replies, "Will do, Sir. Chegwidden, out."

Harm presses the button to release the speakerphone, and turns to the SecNav, extending his hand, "Let us know if you need anything else, Sir, and enjoy your visit with the Prime Minister."

Nelson reluctantly shakes the offered hand, and nods to Mac in acknowledgement before heading to his awaiting limo.

After Nelson has left, Harm falls into the desk chair with an exasperated sigh.

Mac looks at him with her eyebrows raised.

Harm chuckles, and gives her a wide grin. "Don't give me that look, Marine, I was taking a note from your playbook and being nice."