Chapter 38

"Mr. Rabb, are you sure that you didn't know the assailant?"

The question had been asked over ten times by ten different persons. This time it was a London detective who stood by the hospital bed as Harm's cuts were being rebandaged. It was Hollings who found him passed out on the living room floor and made the call to both the police and an ambulance.

When Harm woke a day later, he had his left arm in a sling and his body felt like it had been run over by a Tomcat. Two days later he was chomping at the bit wanting to run off and find Mac but the medical staff threatened to tie him down if he sought to escape. "For the hundredth time, no! No, I don't fucking know who he was."

"You Yanks and your cussing. It's not the time or place for it." The detective was a five foot, three inch female with long red hair held back in a ponytail. Shs spoke in a heavy Irish accent and rolled her eyes each time Harm cringed as the nurse lathered on a salve. "We did find the vehicle that took your wife. It was dumped about five miles away from your home."

"You found the car?" Harm perked up, feeling grateful that at least they found a piece of evidence. If they dusted for prints they'd find Vukovic all over the car, he was sure of it. "Tell me you found some evidence."

"We didn't. Everything appears to have been wiped down."

"Cameras? Eye witnesses?"

Detective Connor shook her head slowly. "Nothing. Not even a hair."

No, that couldn't be right. No one was ever that thorough. Vic was too much of a lazy piece of shit to be that good at hiding his crime. "Lt Commander Gregory Vukovic kidnapped her, I know he did."

"Vukovic is at the office, Captain and has been since the incident." Admiral Hollings chose that moment to appear, his expression a solemn one as he stepped into the tiny room. "He's helping with the search, calling a few of his contacts which is how they found the car."

"BULLSHIT. He took Mac and has her somewhere in the city." He recalled Vic's sickening videos and tried not to imagine Mac dropped onto a bed inside of some cold, dingy basement, a plaything for Vukovic's whims.

"And you are?" Detective Connor glanced at the man up and down, mildly scrutinizing the extensive fruit salad on his chest and the stripes on his epaulets. "Admiral?"

"Hollings. Commander of Naval Air Forces Europe. Captain Rabb is my subordinate and the commanding officer of JAG. I trust his instincts and if he believes Vukovic is involved, he's telling the truth."

"Sir, you need to ask him where she is, point blank. He won't be able to hide his tell. He never has."

"What tell?"

One of the attributes that made him a good lawyer came from his time at the Academy and then flight school where Harm's favorite extracurricular activity was poker. He'd learn to read the table and pick up each player's quirks, a trick he carried over to the witnesses he interviewed. He could tell when he was being lied to. "He licks his lips incessantly… It's more than just him moistening his lips, it's a quirk. And when he talks about Mac it's…it's predatorial."

"So you want me to ask a few questions to Mr. Vukovic and hope he does that lip thing?" The Detective was more than a little exasperated. "That isn't exactly evidence."

"Follow him." Harm turned to Connor, "You can have a constable watching him."

"Yes but, you've given me nothing tangible, just some random accusation of a man you attacked and are on trial for. I can't make miracles happen. I need more."

"Captain. Harm, you know I want Vukovic investigated as badly as you do…worse, in fact but the detective has a point. This sounds like a farfetched accusation by a man so obsessed he'll make up lies."

"I'm not making up lies. He's the one obsessed with my wife!" Harm frowned and then glanced at Connor. "Detective, Gregory Vukovic is the godson of the US Ambassador to the UK."

"Ambassador DeLong?" Connor stated in surprise. She scrubbed a hand over her face and sighed heavily.

"Yes. She's covered up for him before."

"This doesn't exactly help us, Mr. Rabb. Winfield house is considered US soil. I can't exactly flash a badge and waltz on in searching for your missing wife. Hell, I doubt I could get a warrant."

The detective was right, he knew. And even if Winfield House hid a cache of sins, it would take high level government intervention for any kind of search. There was a contact, one that hated Vukovic just as much as he did but Harm wasn't sure how much Victor would help given his fealty to DeLong.

Hollings was still a wildcard. For a man who claimed Vukovic had assaulted his daughter, he did little to push that case forward. The proof was nothing more than an unsubstantiated accusation. The man always regarded him gruffly until Mac came on scene and the older man seemed to soften somewhat. Or was Creswell's short stay in the UK the motivating force of Hollings' about face?

Harm wasn't sure why but the hair at the back of his neck suddenly stood up and a familiar sickening feeling fell upon him. He only wished Mac were there to justify the belief that the Admiral was not to be trusted because he was about to stick his foot in his mouth.

"She has something on you, doesn't she?" He asked Hollings, grinning when the Admiral's expression changed.

Detective Connor wisely remained silent and took a step backwards when she also noticed the change in the Admiral's demeanor.

"You also have a tell." Harm used his chin to point at the rubber band Hollings was rolling between two fingers. "You fidget with that rubber band. Always have a small box at the corner of your desk full of them. Some are broken."

Harm had also noticed the angry red mark across the Admiral's wrist, a sign the man had pulled the elastic and let it slap down on his skin. Hollings glanced at his hand and then back at the younger officer. "Been doing that since the Gulf. A little pain helps ease the stress."

"I used to quiz my RIO on World History. Stress relief is a little different when you're Angels 30."

"That's right, you're a veteran too."

"Yeah. Still remember flying over burning oil fields. Don't think I'll ever forget that. Shot down my first plane and then couldn't sleep for days wondering if the other pilot had a family."

"War is war." Hollings shifted a little and then moved a little closer to the bed. "You're a good man. A little impulsive but, a good man and a helluva officer."

"Then help me. Where is she?"

"Winfield House. Adele called me shortly after Vukovic arrived." Harm let out a sigh of relief. At the very least the son of a bitch hadn't taken Mac out of the country.

"You knew where she was all along?" Detective Connor asked, her hand hovering slightly above her firearm. "This makes you an accessory."

Hollings glared at the woman and snorted. "I'm aware, detective. So arrest me, take me in. You have zero proof and, like you said, no way of getting into the Winfield house."

"What does she have on you?" Harm pushed again, hoping to make sense of Adele's connection to the Admiral.

"An affair." He let out a deep breath and felt the weight he'd been carrying finally drop away. Hollings lowered him into the guest chair with an audible sigh and then scrubbed a hand across his face. "An affair with her, with DeLong."

"You slept with Adele DeLong?" It was impossible not to be disgusted. Had it been a close friend, Harm would have inquired if his male "equipment" had been damaged in any way.

"This is not an excuse but, I was drunk…She got me drunk. I honestly don't remember anything else but waking up in a hotel bed…She threatened to ruin me if I didn't find the way to make Vukovic your Chief of Staff." Hollings wrapped the rubber band around his fingers, strangling the blood from each digit until it hurt. "I love my wife. I would never, ever hurt her…and now my daughter…"

"Did he really rape her?"

"Almost…I stopped it, told Adele…Almost killed the goddamned son of a bitch." The Admiral sighed again. It felt good to tell the truth for once and purge himself of all the wrongs he'd done. Like Harm, Hollings too was a good man caught in a terrible situation. "I can't help you more than I have, Captain. Take me in if you have to detective."

Connor reached under her jacket to a small leather case attached to her belt. The cool feel of metal greated her as she slowly pulled the cuffs free. "You have the right to remain silent-"

An arrest wouldn't do a damned thing to find Mac, Harm knew and the last thing he wanted was for someone else to be hurt by Vukovic and DeLong. "Stop. I'm dropping all of the charges."

"What?"

"You heard me. You want to help us, you want to undo what you did wrong - tell them I died. Tell everyone and make sure Vukovic knows."

Hollings stared at Harm like the man had lost his mind and then a sly smile spread across his lips. "The element of surprise, Captain?"

"Aye, sir."

The accommodations were better than a five star hotel. If she wanted food, it would be brought. Coffee at 5pm? Done. A change of clothes? Mac was provided with a rather expensive pair of designer jeans, a pretty pink blouse and even silk pajamas to sleep in.

She was trapped in a gilded cage and as Mac stood by a window and stared out at the gardens, it dawned on her that there was really no way out. At the very least Vukovic hadn't made an appearance, the man was being kept away by his godmother who was trying her best to calm the situation.

"Colonel?" Mac turned away from the window to find Adele DeLong still seated on one of the oversized chairs. There were various small bites and two different types of teas spread across the small coffee table. Sandwiches, fruits, scones, jelly and clotted cream - all of the fixings to create a proper tea party. "Sarah, please sit."

Mac was hungry but only gave a cursory glance at all of the food before staring back out at the soggy garden. It had been raining non-stop and not just a light drizzle. The storm had raged for the past 36 hours and even threatened to knock out power. She hoped some terrible, cataclysmic event would occur so that an escape could become an option. "I'm not hungry."

Of course, her stomach chose that specific moment to betray her loud enough for Adele to hear. The older woman cracked a smile and actually laughed a little. "Your tummy says otherwise. I'm not an enemy, you know? It's true, I wasn't a fan of your late husband but-"

"Stop talking like he's dead because he isn't." She'd know and that sinking feeling hadn't reared its ugly head, yet.

"You sound so sure of yourself."

"I am."

DeLong sighed dramatically and then stood to grab a laptop resting on the sofa. Finding the local news page she then walked to Mac pointing at the screen. "He died two days ago…Someone broke into his apartment, stabbed him…"

"No. No goddamnit!" It wasn't true. It couldn't be because Mac knew she'd feel the chasm of loss deep within her soul. The tears still fell from her eyes, ones that she angrily wiped away. "What's the purpose of keeping me here if you believe Harm is dead? You have zero leverage."

Adele snapped the laptop shut and unceremoniously dropped it onto the sofa. "I'm trying to keep you safe until Gregory comes to his senses. He loves you or at least he thinks he does and if he would just let the medication work then things would go back to normal."

"Medication? What medication?"

"Aripiprazole, for bipolar disorder." DeLong elegantly sat back on her chair and motioned for Mac to do the same. She waited for the Marine to comply and wouldn't speak until Mac sat across from her. "Earl Gray or Oolong?"

Hesitantly she slipped into the opposite chair and watched the older woman waiting for her to choose. "Earl Gray, no milk. One cube of sugar."

"Good choice." Adele served her guests on some of the finest, most expensive tea sets her lips would ever drink from. It was a perk of living in Winfield house that she constantly took advantage of. "I hated tea until I came to Britain. We really don't know the garbage we have back in the States. Now I prefer it over coffee."

Mac hated the friendly chit chat but if it meant keeping the woman on her side, she'd endure some of Adele's attempts at pleasantness. "I enjoy both but, I have to admit, the tea here is fabulous."

DeLong grinned as she dropped a cube of sugar in the tea. "Must be killing you to be polite. I know you hate me."

"Hate is a strong word. And I really don't know you well enough. I do question why a woman in such a position of power would risk it all for her godson." She thanked the Ambassador for the tea and only took a sip when her enemy did the same.

"I question myself all of the time, Colonel. But you know my reasons. Unfortunately, I'm indebted for life."

"I understand but sometimes you need to break promises."

Adele took a bite out of a cucumber sandwich that she thoughtfully chewed. "Maybe. But not today."

"You know you have to let me go, eventually."

"And I will once I know Gregory has come to his senses. I know he won't hurt you but I'm concerned about what you'll do to him if his desires for you are too strong."

Mac chuckled, the thought of Adele worrying her precious godson could be hurt by a woman was just too amusing. "Afraid I'll kill him?"

The words made DeLong's face fall and for the second time in just a few months she was faced with Vic's mortality. "You wouldn't do that. You're not impulsive like that Neanderthal husband of yours."

"Mmmm." The rage simmered within only noticeable when Mac placed her cup down and snapped the handle. "Ooops."

Adele's eyes focused on the china, the priceless kind that had been in Winfield house for over half a century. "That set was gifted to George IV after the second World War."

"See, Harm's not the only impulsive one." Mac leaned back slowly sitting upright in an almost regal kind of position. " Let me go and I promise not to kill your godson because if he comes anywhere near me, God Himself won't stop the Hell I'll rain down on your fucked up little family."

The former Congresswoman put down her tea, stood up calmly and then, without warning, slammed an open hand against Mac's left cheek. "I wanted to protect you but I see you are beyond saving."

Those may have been the last words uttered but the final blow was shot by the Marine who stood, grabbed the chair and threw it against one of the windows. It didn't break. She knew it wouldn't because the old townhouse had been retrofitted with impact windows due to the Presidents and dignitaries that often visited. But, it did leave a mark, a crack in the center which creeped upwards in web-like patterns.

As childish and impulsive as it was, Mac felt vindicated in the way Adele stared with grave concern and then was quickly rushed away by security. Of course, she'd likely pay for that outburst but from the splintered remains of the chair she's also found a weapon - a sliver of wood with enough of a tip to use as a knife.