By Kay

Whether mercifully or not for Mac, Harm had slipped back into unconsciousness before his past could unfold any further. She was torn between wanting to know more about that young man, no matter how much it hurt either of them, and being grateful he no longer had to relive that horrible time in his life.

Thoughts of Harm, and her personal feelings, were quickly pushed aside though, knowing that she had limited time to relieve him of the bullet and dress his wounds before he would regain consciousness. Calling on every ounce of training and discipline she possessed, Mac focused on the task before her.

With a precision that would have made any surgeon proud, Mac went to work on him as if her life depended on it. And in a way it did, because she knew that if he didn’t make it out of this, she wouldn’t either. He was her life. That realization was nothing new to her. She was all to familiar with the feeling, especially after the night of her rehearsal dinner. The memories slammed into her with the force of a freight train once more. She had felt like her life was ending that night, her whole future ripped away from her with a single phone call.

Focus. She needed to focus.

She had felt helpless that night. But Harm was here now, with her, and she would do everything in her power to get them both out of here alive.

The incision was just big enough to extract the bullet and with that finally complete she cleansed the wound again as best she could before dressing it. After that was accomplished Mac untied the ropes binding his limbs to the table legs. Making sure he was still resting as peacefully as could be expected Mac brushed his hair back from his forehead before standing, taking the supplies with her to clean at the sink.

It was hotter than hell in the small...where exactly were they? Mac finally allowed herself the luxury of taking in her surroundings. It was semi-dark in the fading daylight, an internal note of the time telling her it was late evening.

Upon further inspection of the area, Mac found a flash light amongst some tools off to the side of the room. Flipping it on but making sure to keep it aimed lower to the ground, she realized they weren’t really in a warehouse at all, but what appeared to be a garage of some sort. Looking more closely at the scattered parts here and there, she finally realized they were in an airplane hanger. It was confirmed when she looked toward the back of the room, the large doors leading outside held closed by a large chain and padlock.

Blowing out a breath she didn’t even know she was holding, Mac’s mind worked furiously to figure out how an airplane hanger in the middle of nowhere could figure into there investigation into the missing Corpsman. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to see how it could relate to the drug smugglers. But where the hell was the plane? And when would they be coming back?

A soft moan from the general direction of the table caught her attention. Hunching down beside him, Mac held the back of her hand to his forehead. The heat was radiating off of him.

Pulling her top shirt over her head she was left in just an undershirt but was instantly more comfortable in the stifling heat. Mac then wet the shirt in the sink before settling down beside him under the table. As gently as she could, she moved him into her lap, wiping his brow with the cool cloth.

Murmuring in his sleep, Mac soothed him as best she could, stroking his forehead and his cheeks. “It’s okay, Harm. Everything is going to be okay. I’ll think of a way to get us out of here, I promise.”

“S’ok as long as your with me.” His words were slurred but Mac understood and her heart soared.

Leaning down closer to him, she replied, “Oh, I’m definitely here, Flyboy. And you’re going to get better, you hear me? Because you have a severe ass kicking coming for charging into this hornets nest without me.”

For the first time in a while a smile played about his lips. “You can try, Marine.”

Earlier anger at him returned. “You can be damn sure I will, Rabb. That was quite possibly the stupidest thing you’ve ever done. Why in the hell would you do something like that?” The last question, however, was delivered in barely a whisper.

Mustering all the strength he could, Harm opened his eyes and looked deeply into hers. “Because I couldn’t risk losing you. I...I love you, Mac.” Harm’s eyes drifted shut and he again slipped into sleep.

Her heart both soared and broke at the admission. Mac held him to her as the tears slipped freely down her cheeks. “I love you too, Harm. I love you too.”

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