AN: Sorry it took longish for me to post. Thank you to Amy who helped me write this. I know this isn't fluff, the stroy kinda turned into something deeper. It's short, but the next on will be longer, I promise. So read and review!

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Harm's POV

Harm rubbed his eyes. He felt so tired, if only he could close his eyes for just a moment. His body craved sleep. He eyelids felt heavy…

He jerked his head upwards. Harm refused to fall asleep. He was getting nowhere with these files. Meg was gone, Peterson had left no trace anywhere. Every single one of his aliases had hidden the woman in what seemed like random areas. First a shed at the back of a farm, then in a cellar, another in an abandoned hunting lodge. There was no pattern. Harm rubbed his eyes harder and forced the words on the page to come into focus. They refused to obey him.

Maybe it was time for a break. No. Meg was out there and in no way was his tiredness going to stop him from finding her as soon as possible.

The local PD had been all over Meg's disappearance. Her face was plastered over every news station and local radio. If anyone saw her or Peterson they were to call in immediately. NCIS had people digging through Peterson's apartment and workplace for any clue as to where Peterson had taken Meg. Guards were placed at areas Peterson frequented. His apartment was watched. Everyone was working around the clock.

Harm took his eyes off the page and glanced around him. What seemed like the entire JAG office was glancing at sheets of paper. Harriet was going around dabbing at red eyes and offering coffee. Bud was shuffling through a folder, it was the same folder as the one that Harm himself was staring at. Little AJ had long since fallen asleep in a cot Bud had set up beside his desk. It was a wonder all the noise didn't wake him; he was the only one relaxing in the offices.

Krennick had ignored him to grab a cup of coffee off Harriet, and then went back to examining her own files. There was no "nice to see you", the circumstances were too dire. Meg's life was on the line.

The Admiral had been 'interviewing' Peterson's brother all day. A few times the Admiral had come out of the room red faced and frustrated, he would utter a quick "nothing still". Then he would disappear, only to reappear again with two cups of coffee and go back into the Conference room.

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Sometime late in the evening the Admiral escorted Ted Peterson out of the building. The Admiral's face was dejected. Any hope of finding Meg alive was growing slimmer by the second. People began to go home, to sleep, and come back refreshed for the search. Meg's face was again being shown on the news, the reporter asking for anyone with information as to this woman's whereabouts to come forward. Harm knew Peterson wouldn't be so stupid as to take her out into the public. The chances of anyone calling in with an actual sighting were near to none.

With this in mind Harm forced his mind back to the task at hand. With a start Harm realized something – every time Peterson had killed a woman she had been kept in the country. He had never kept a woman in a heavily populated or urban area. Harm checked again. Yes, only rural areas. Chances were that he would keep to that pattern. There weren't that many rural areas in Washington for Peterson to use. To narrow it down even further the number of houses or shed Peterson could get hold of was slim. He would also need to be far away from other houses. That would give them a smaller area to search. Harm reached for his phone. They finally had a lead.

Harm remembered to breathe again for the first time since he had heard Meg was gone.

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Meg's POV

Was it even possible to be even more scared that she was right now? Meg didn't think so. She sat frozen against the wall, stiff with fright, her ears attuned to any small sound that could signal her kidnapper coming back. The adrenaline rush forced her awake, she was running on no sleep, wired and almost hysterical. Thoughts popped in and out of her brain. She had long since lost track of how long she had been kept here, without light the days blended together, only clocked by meals from her kidnapper. Everything was out of her control. Meg's trembling fingers ran through her tangled short hair. Nausea came in waves, each time threatening to overwhelm her. Meg would rock herself until it passed, wishing for someone, anyone to rescue her. Sweat trickled over her forehead, passed her wide scared eyes. Her body was racked with tremors, causing her teeth to chatter and her shoulders to shake. Her breathing was ragged and loud, irritating to her own ears.

Meg shot into the corner, like a dog that had been kicked too many times, at the sound of footsteps toward her small prison. The door creaked open. "Lieutenant? Anyone rescued you yet?" He taunted her.

In the darkness Meg was beginning to forget the faces of the ones she loved. His face, the man she knew as James Verity, taunted her. He came back just to see her, to mock her plight.

"They will come" Empty words now. It was her mantra, if anyone could find her Harm would. If he even knew out at sea. It had started to become less likely after a while. She didn't believe it anymore, but that didn't stop her saying it.

"Well times up for them. I gave them their shot. He dusted off an old box. He carefully sat down. "See there in something you should now. I didn't plan on taking you." He grinned a little. "Well you are a nice girl, but really I prefer them a little more…submissive." He glanced around her little cellar. "So the time has come for our friendship to end. I toyed with the idea of leaving you here alive, waiting for your so called friends. But I can't risk you escaping. I'm so sorry." He didn't look it. Meg shrank further into her corner.

Her eyes were panicked, flicked at him, then the door. She wanted out. Surely someone would come… He stood up. She clawed at the walls, she was too weak to fight back. He moved toward her, drawing a gun out of his pocket. She stilled petrified. "It will be quick" He smiled and calmly aimed the gun at her. She was trapped, there was no way out.