Mac’s Enlisted Quarters

1820 Local

Mac was collapsed on her couch, desperately tired from the day’s events. Security had arrived after a thirty-minute interval. (Something else she was going to have to discuss with them after this was over.) Gunnery Sargent Rivera had led the team. Evidence was bagged and her statement was taken.

Wearily she had recounted last night’s episode, aware that she was damning Linda with every word. She did leave out the warning about Commander Benton however. At this point, he was number one on her suspect list and she didn’t want to give the game away. She had then described Linda’s failure to show at work and her own subsequent concern, which resulted in her finding Linda.

Finally finishing up, the Base JAG had shown up and taken her through the whole thing again. The Navy Lieutenant had been brisk and efficient, but the conclusion was obvious. Officially, Linda had committed suicide.

Trying to keep her mind away from the emotional side, she went over the conversation Linda and she had had the night before. Try as she might, she couldn’t get anything concrete out of it. The only thing that was clear was that Linda had been trying to warn her about Benton.

But what about Benton? Was it about the missing aircraft parts, or something else? Mac sighed. As much as her mind circled, she couldn’t see it.

The phone rang, startling her. Guiltily she checked her internal clock and realized she was late for her check in call with Harm.

“Hello?”

“Mac? What’s wrong?” He could hear it in her intonation. He had been going to tease her about being late with her call, but that one word set off the alarm bells.

“Harm?” Her voice still sounded strained.

“Yes Mac. It’s me. I was worried when you didn’t check in at the normal time. Has something happened?” Anxiety made his tone sharp, but the concern was evident.

There was a short silence as she tried to control her emotions. She’d been strong until she heard his voice. Finally the strain of the day got to her, and she found herself choked with tears unexpectedly.

“Um…just a second.” She drew a shaky breath and gulped the tears back. Crying wasn’t going to help anything. It never did`, she reminded herself sternly.

“Mac, honey, what is it?” He heard her trying to stifle the tears, and alarm coursed through him, his imagination running wild.

“It’s Linda. Linda Charles. The girl I went out with last night.” She was steadier now, but it was not without effort.

Relieved that it wasn’t Mac that was in trouble, he was still concerned about her. “What about her?”

“She’s dead.” Mac couldn’t bring herself to say she committed suicide.

“Dead? What happened? Are you all right? Were you hurt?” Harm couldn’t stop himself; worry made him shoot the questions out.

“No, I’m fine Harm. It’s just all so awful. It looks like…like…she…might have killed herself.”

There was another silence as Harm digested what she said. “Might have?”

Harm was relieved to hear the strength come back into her voice as she outlined her theory and the days events. She had to stay strong, for own safety more than anything else. She had to keep her wits about her.

As the story wound down, he found himself agreeing with her. “I think you might be right, Mac. It’s just too coincidental that she started to warn you and then killed herself.” Accepting Mac’s insight into Linda was his first reaction, he trusted her judgement, but he had to ask. “Are you sure that you’re not reading too much into this? I mean, I trust you, but I want you to really think about it. Are you feeling guilty because you didn’t push her harder last night? Or maybe you just don’t want to accept that a friend committed suicide.”

“I’m sure, Harm. Yes, I wish I had pushed harder, and I definitely don’t like the idea of suicide, but I’m sure. It just doesn’t add up. She gave absolutely no indication that she was in despair. Depressed, upset, yes. But not to the point of killing herself.”

“OK, I just wanted to be sure.”

“And what about her uniform? You don’t iron your uniform for work if you’re going to kill yourself. And why wouldn’t she leave a note? She had family; she would want them to understand why she was doing it.”

“OK, OK, I said I believe you.” In spite of the darkness of the subject, his voice took on a teasing tone. He hoped to get a smile out of her before the call was over.

“No, you didn’t. You said I might be right. That’s you’re way of trying to weasel out of something.” Thankfully, he could hear the smile in her voice.

“Baby, you know I always think you’re right. You’re perfect, you never make a mistake.”

She rolled her eyes, forgetting he couldn’t see her, then actually laughed. “Quit sucking up, Sailor. I promise, I’ll protect you from Singer when I get home.”

He laughed with her, relieved she seemed to be back to normal, but wanted to add a word of caution. “Just be careful, Mac. This could mean you’re on the right track. And if you’re suspicion is true, they won’t hesitate to kill again.”

“I know.” She was quiet for a moment.

“Harm?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For listening. For believing me. For not thinking I’m just an hysterical female.”

“When have I ever treated you like that?”

“Uh…before the Watertown incident?”

“So…I learned my lesson. I love you Mac.”

“I love you, Harm.”

They were like teenagers, not wanting to hang up. Every phone call ended this way, each one delaying the inevitable.

“Harm?”

“Yes?”

“I miss you.”

“Mac?”

“Yes?”

“I miss you too.”

They both laughed at the inane conversation.

“Get some rest, Marine. You sound exhausted, and you still have to go to work tomorrow. But call me if you need me. Any time, not just at the scheduled time. I’m here if you need me, and I can be there in a couple of hours”.

Her heart warmed at his sincerity. She knew he meant it.

“Good night Harm. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

“Night Marine. I’ll be waiting.”

The both finally hung up.

Mac Quarters

Saturday 0635

The sound of the phone woke her from a deep sleep. Only barely conscious, she lifted the receiver and answered it groggily. “Hello?”

“Hey there slug-a-bed! Rise and shine! It’s reveille! Up and at em!” Harm’s disgustingly cheery voice assailed her ears.

“Harm?” She still wasn’t really awake.

He further disgusted her by breaking into song in an annoyingly off-key voice, “Oh what a beautiful morning! Oh what a beautiful day!” It was the song from “Oklahoma”. Normally she loved musicals, but not at 0635 in the morning.

“Oh God Harm. Shut up!” She’d managed not to laugh. Barely.

“You’re not a morning person, are you Mac?” His teasing voice made her smile.

“Flyboy, if you were here I’d show you what a morning person I am.” Her sultry tone of voice stopped him in mid tease.

“Oh yeah? What would you do?” His voice dropped to a low tone.

“Well, if you were here, I would of course be sleeping nude.”

“Of course.” He tried to sound blasé, but it was very difficult.

“And you would be too.”

“Uh huh.” His answers kept getting shorter and shorter as he imagined the scenario.

“Then I would slowly kiss you awake, making sure to feel that sexy morning beard on your face.”

“And then?” He didn't know he had a sexy morning beard.

“Well, I guess I would have to find out if you were…awake…everywhere. I’d let my hand trail down your chest, across your stomach, then I’d reach down a little lower and…”

“OK, that’s it. You’re making me crazy. Stop. I already wished I was there before I called you, now I can’t stand it; I need to be there with you.”

She laughed, wishing they were cuddled up together too. “I miss you, Harm.”

“Well, actually, that’s why I called.” His voice changed to a more professional tone.

“Oh?” She couldn’t understand why he was suddenly “Commander Rabb”.

“Yes, I’m here at the office and the Admiral just walked in. I’m putting you on speaker phone.” Harm was grateful he was sitting at his desk. He hadn’t expected Mac to start one of “those” conversations so early in the morning. He really didn’t need the Admiral to see the results of it.

She was very glad he had warned her. It would have been too embarrassing to have the Admiral overhear one of their more personal discussions.

“Colonel, I hope we didn’t call too early. I did not take the time difference into account.” AJ eyed Harm suspiciously; he looked a little flushed.

“Good Morning Sir. And I was just getting up anyway.” She lied as she got up and started the coffeemaker.

“I wanted to get an update on the case from you directly, as well as give you and the Commander some news.”

She watched longingly as the coffeemaker started brewing. It was difficult to maintain a professional attitude before she got her morning caffeine kick.

“Yes Sir. At this point, there isn’t too much to tell. I’ve gone through the files, learned the systems, and kept my eyes and ears open, but so far I haven’t learned anything really pertinent to the case.”

“Commander Rabb has kept me updated, Colonel. I understand. I also understand that you suspect that PO Charles death was not a suicide. Have you learned anything more about that?”

Mac sighed as she poured herself the needed morning brew and sat down at the table. “No Sir. But I don’t really have the freedom to investigate that, as much as I want too.”

“Well, that has to do with my news.” The Admiral sounded a little smug.

“Sir?”

“It seems that PO Charles’s parents do not believe she committed suicide. They are requesting an investigation into the death of their daughter, and I intend to give it to them.”

Relieved that her friend’s death would be investigated, Mac was quick to volunteer. “I’d like to be in on that Sir. I could do it from here.”

“No Colonel, I have a better idea. I’ll send Commander Rabb out to investigate.” Mac smiled hugely as she sipped her coffee. “I’m sure he’ll do an excellent job, Sir. He always does.”

Harm was also smiling at the Admiral’s announcement, but he quickly dropped it when he received the Admiral’s stern look. “He will be out in San Diego by Monday afternoon. But Colonel, you are still undercover there. You cannot be seen together outside of his investigation into PO Charles’s death.” AJ shot another glare at Harm as Mac answered him.

“Of course Sir. We’ve worked together undercover before, I’m sure that won’t be a problem.”

“And, of course, you must remember that he is an officer and you are enlisted. There are definite rules against fraternization.” AJ kept his eyes on Harm, who did his best to remain expressionless under the Admiral’s scrutiny.

Not even that admonition could ruin Mac’s happy mood. “Yes Sir. I understand.”

“Sir?” Mac just had a germ of an idea.

“Yes Colonel?”

“Would it be possible for the Stennis to courier it’s receiving records and requisitions for the last six months to me?”

AJ looked at Harm again, who shrugged, not knowing where she was going with this. “Anything is possible, Colonel. Why do you need them?”

“Well Sir, something just occurred to me. I’ve gone through a lot of the files here looking for any anomalies or leads, but have found nothing. Requisitions and shipment papers always match up. I was thinking that I could compare the Stennis’s records to those here and see if there are any differences. The Stennis is due in here on Tuesday, and we have a lot of equipment and supplies that are going out to her.”

AJ was silent, thinking over her proposal. Harm threw his support into the idea. “It’s a good idea, Sir. JAG Pacific had accountants go over most of the warehouse paperwork and found nothing, but they didn’t think of this. Maybe we could get a lead out of this.”

Gratified that her partner supported her, Mac waited for the Admiral’s answer.

“I’ll call the Captain of the Stennis myself, Colonel, and explain the situation. I’ll make sure he keeps quiet about it and sends it all to you. Captain Lewis is a friend of mine.”

“Thank you Sir.”

“Have a good weekend, Colonel. The Commander will still be receiving a check in call from you tonight and tomorrow, correct?”

“Yes Sir.”

“Good.” AJ paused for a moment. “Mac, be careful. If someone involved in this killed PO Charles, you have to be extra careful they don’t figure out who you are. Don’t take any unnecessary chances.”

“Yes Sir. I’ll be careful.” Her tone turned playful. “It’s the Commander who is prone to recklessness, Sir, don’t you think?”

Stifling a grin, AJ pretended to think that over as Harm rolled his eyes. “You’re right, of course, Colonel. How foolish of me to forget.” Mac and AJ shared a laugh at Harm’s expense.

“I’ll turn you back over the Commander, Colonel. I’ll let you know what the results of my phone call with Captain Lewis as soon as possible.”

“Thank you Sir.”

Harm picked up the phone as the Admiral left his office.

“Thanks Mac. So much. Since when am I reckless?” His aggrieved tone nearly made her laugh.

“When are you not? Let’s see…there was that time you allowed Lieutenant Rivers to hire someone to kill you so you could find an assassin.” She was going to enjoy this. There had been so many times he had made her crazy.

“I didn’t allow him! He did it all on his own!” Harm was righteously indignant at that accusation.

“And then…oh yes… going off after Palmer and Clay without waiting for me, your partner.”

“Well…uh…I didn’t want to…” His voice trailed away when he couldn’t think of a good excuse. The truth - that he was protecting her - would only get him in trouble.

“And how about that case where you met Palmer? When you broke into that weapons manufacturer all alone and Palmer nearly killed you?”

Harm had a sudden realization that maybe she wasn’t going to let up, that she was serious. “Look…Mac…”

“And what about the time you went after Dar Lin’s abuser - Charlie? You did that alone too!” Countless incidents where he played the hero occurred to her as she warmed to the subject. So many times when she could have helped him.

“Come on Mac. Give me a break. You know those were all special circumstances, most of it was the only thing I could do.” He was beginning to sound a little desperate.

As much as she enjoyed toying with him, she decided to let him off the hook. “I could go on, of course. I could mention Russia, but I won’t. I think I’ve proved my point.”

“You went with me to Russia. Both times.” He was triumphant now.

“Not by your choice, Snookums. You would have been on your own had the decision been left up to you. Both times.” Now she was triumphant in her rebuttal, having anticipated his objection.

“Maaaaac…” Maybe whining would end the torture. It was not very dignified, but if it worked…

It did. She laughed. “I love you, Harm.”

“I love you. Now about what you were telling me earlier…”

“Hmmm. I don’t remember what we were talking about. Can you remind me?”

“Well, you said something about kissing me awake, then your hand was trailing down-”

“Commander Rabb!” The Admiral was standing at his door again. Harm turned crimson and started to stutter. “Uh, gotta go Colonel. The Admiral needs to speak with me.”

Mac was laughing hysterically, having heard the Admiral’s stentorian tone. “OK, call me later. I really do love you, Flyboy.”

“Bye Mac.” And with a click, he cut the connection.

Harm came to his feet to acknowledge the Admiral’s return. The Admiral waved him down and chose to ignore the part of the conversation he had overheard. He had a file in his hand, which he tossed on Harm’s desk. “That’s the file on the death of PO Charles. You probably are aware of all the details in it already, but you might want to scan through it anyway. Maybe you’ll see something I missed.”

Harm didn’t miss the Admiral’s concern. “Is something wrong, Sir?”

The Admiral sat down in front of Harm’s desk. “Not really. I just have a bad feeling about this. I’ve spoken with the victim’s parents, and they are quite convincing. They don’t believe for a minute their daughter committed suicide. And after hearing Mac, I’m inclined to agree with them, in spite of the evidence.”

AJ shifted in the chair, meeting Harm’s gaze frankly. “I don’t like this case at all, Harm. If millions of dollars of aircraft parts are being stolen, where are they going? And why didn’t we know about it before? The more I think of all the ramifications of this case, the less I like it. Someone in the Navy is involved, probably a lot of people. And it would have to be someone higher up than this Commander Benton. He may be involved, but he can’t be the top man. Someone near the top of the base command. You and Mac had better be very careful out there.”

Harm nodded. “Yes Sir. We will be.”

AJ got to his feet and smiled. “I’m going home now. Tiner will have your travel arrangements out to you tomorrow.” He stopped at the door and turned back. “When this case is finished up, if you and the Colonel want to have a few days of leave, I have no objection. Doesn’t your Mother live out there?”

Harm grinned “Yes Sir, in La Jolla. I’m sure she’d be glad to see us.”

“Carry on, Commander.”

“Aye Sir.”

Naval Logistics Center

1136 Local

Mac was in uniform and sifting through files when she heard some loud voices. It sounded liked Commander Benton, but she couldn’t identify the other voice. She paused to listen, trying to make out some of the words, but she couldn’t. The walls muffled the voices to well. And just who would Benton be arguing with so loudly, anyway?

She had come in to try and take some of the files home. If she could just get them out, she was sure no one notice. It would be much safer to compare documents away from the office.

The Admiral had informed Harm, who relayed the information to her, that she could expect the documents she wanted tomorrow afternoon. The Stennis was not far out, and a helo would bring them in, and one of the Captain’s men would bring the documents to her door. The Admiral must have impressed the Captain with the need for speed and efficiency, as well as discretion.

Sighing, she gave up. There was no use trying to get the files out now, with Benton here. And a night raid would be too risky. She’d have to think of something else.

The door to the file room opened up, startling her. “Chief, what are you doing here?” Commander Benton’s voice was hard. He eyed her suspiciously.

Coming to attention, she replied, “Just had some filing to take care of, Sir. With the Stennis coming in, I wanted to be sure everything was caught up.” She’d prepared her story ahead of time.

Benton did not look impressed. “I prefer that people check with me before working overtime, Chief. I like to know what’s going on.”

“Won’t happen again, Sir.” Figures. Instead of appreciating any extra effort, he makes it into a problem.

“Finish it up Chief. I’m leaving in about 15 minutes, and I want to make sure everything is locked up behind me.”

“Aye Sir.”

Benton turned and stalked off, leaving another, younger officer behind him. Mac had not seen him; Benton had blocked him from her view.

He was a handsome young Lieutenant, around 30 from the looks of him. Tall, but not as tall as Harm, with sandy blonde hair and blue eyes. He also had a nice smile, again not as nice as Harm’s, which he was directing at her.

“Don’t mind him, Chief. He’s just a grouch.”

There was no safe way to answer this. As enlisted, criticism of her senior officer was a distinct no-no, and denying the charge was to argue with this senior officer, not to mention hypocritical. She said nothing.

“I’m Lieutenant Sanders. I’m going to be the new second in command here.” He smiled at her again, rather disarmingly, but she’d seen the look in his eyes. She’d seen it too many times not to recognize it for what it was.

“Yes Sir. I’m Chief Petty Officer Sarah Miles. I’ve just recently been stationed here.” Mac kept her cool, knowing he would get the message without her having to say a word. It had been a long time since she’d had to deal with this crap. Being a high-ranking officer kept others in line.

“Oh at ease, Chief. I’m not much on protocol. Let’s just keep this informal, all right?”

Mac stared at him, looking for anything that might indicate an ulterior motive. She could find nothing in the open countenance of the officer in front of her. She relaxed her stance slightly, but remained on guard.

“As you wish, Sir.”

He sighed, and rolled his eyes. “Look, I’m not making a pass at you. I’m just trying to introduce myself.”

“I didn’t presume you were doing anything inappropriate, Sir, but I appreciate the clarification.” Mac finally relaxed at his open declaration, and let a little of her normal friendliness show through. “Welcome to NLC, Sir. I hope you enjoy your time here.”

“Thanks, Chief.

“If you’ll excuse me, Sir, I need to get going. Commander Benton doesn’t like to have wait on people or repeat himself.”

“Of course, Chief. Say, you wouldn’t know of a good place to have lunch, would you?” He cast a hopeful glance in her direction.

Picking up her purse, she headed out the door as she answered. “No Sir, I’m new in town. But if you check with the Commander, I’m sure he could suggest some place. Good afternoon, Sir, it was nice meeting you.” She shut the door behind her before he could reply.

She heaved a sigh of relief as she got into the car. Caught, but no harm done. Another thought hit her. Why would Lieutenant Sanders being arguing so loudly with Benton? He was a junior officer, and new here. She’d have to keep an eye on him.

Sighing again at the new wrinkle in the case, she headed home to give Harm a call. He wanted to know when she was finished at the warehouse.

Mac’s quarters

Sunday

1740 Local

Mac surveyed the stacks of papers all over her kitchen table and suppressed a sigh as she sat back. Three boxes full of papers had been delivered from the Stennis early this morning and it had taken most of the day to separate them into recognizable order. It had been an arduous task, and she just hoped the results would be worth it.

Standing up, she stretched the stiff muscles of her back and neck, wishing Harm was here to give her a massage. He was very good with his hands. And other things. She smiled as she thought about that, then forced her mind back to the problem at hand.

Most of the requisitions had been for material she had not been interested in, but she had separated the requisitions and receiving papers for aircraft parts into one stack. One very large stack. Now, how was she going to get into the warehouse and compare these to the records there? It was a task that would require several hours, and a lot of room for spreading out.

She suppressed a sigh at the thought of that task. She was not looking forward to it. ‘Suck it up, Marine,’ she told herself. The only way she could do this was to break into the warehouse tonight. She knew Harm would have a fit, but she could see no other way to accomplish what needed to be done. To bring home the files from the warehouse would require at least three trips back and forth, and being unobserved while that happened. And if she were caught, there would be no explaining it.

She checked her internal clock, and then looked at her watch, lovingly tracing a finger over the dial. Harm really had turned out to be a considerate, romantic man. More so than she had ever suspected he would be. God, she missed him. Thank God he was going to be here tomorrow.

Of course, it could be a little frustrating. Getting together romantically was simply out of the question. If they wanted to continue to work together, they would have to prove to the Admiral they could be trusted, and getting caught in a romantic situation while undercover would definitely blow that. But at least she’d get to see him.

She decided to go ahead and call him. It was early, but he wouldn’t mind. Besides, she just wanted to hear the sound of his voice. Walking over to the couch, she picked up the phone as she sat down, and dialed his number, eagerly anticipating the sound of his voice. At the same time, she dreaded the argument she knew would come when she told him of her plans.

She was totally unprepared when a woman’s voice answered Harm’s phone. “Hello?”

Shocked into silence, she didn’t answer. Whoever it was repeated her greeting. “Hello? Is anyone there?” Oh God, it sounded like…Renee.

“Hello. May I speak to Harm please?” Mac finally forced the question out.

“Mac? Is that you?” Renee sounded like her old self, charming as ever. The only problem was, Mac had never found her charming. And given the current circumstances, she doubted she would ever find Renee charming.

But that was all in the past, Mac reminded herself. But what the hell what was the Video Princess doing there at 2046 on a Sunday night? “Yes, is this Renee? What a surprise. How are you?” It was not just a surprise; it was an unexpected blow to her stomach.

“Hello, Mac. I’m fine, thank you. And how are you?” As it always had been, the civility between the two women was forced.

“Fine, thank you. Um…Is Harm available? I really need to speak to him.” Calm, Mac reminded herself. I will be calm. I trust Harm. Nevertheless, her mantra not withstanding, her stomach was in knots.

Renee laughed easily. “He will be in a minute. He’s in the shower. Would you like to hold on? I’ll get him for you if it’s an emergency.”

Mac gritted her teeth. ‘Make one move towards him and they’ll have to carry your carcass out of there in pieces.’ She shook her head to clear it, grateful she hadn’t said that out loud. “No, that’s all right. Would you ask him to call me please? I do need to talk to him about a case.” I will not give her the satisfaction of knowing I’m jealous. I will be calm. I will be polite. I will not reach through the phone and tear her hair out.

“Of course, no problem. I’m sure he’ll be out in a minute. If he’s not, I’ll go in after him.” Renee laughed, not really sure of Mac and Harm’s current relationship, but ready to spread a little manure around if she could. “I’ll make sure he calls tonight, but it may be a few minutes. We’ve got a lot of catching up to do before I relinquish him to work.”

“Please ask him to call soon. It’s important.” Mac refused to rise to the bait. She’d be damned if she’d get in a cat fight with that bitch. She would retain her dignity, if nothing else. And somehow, deep inside, despite her insecurities, she trusted Harm.

“All right. Nice talking to you.” Renee tried to match her civility, belatedly.

“And you Renee. And give my regards to your husband.” Mac couldn’t help herself; she had to get in that last parting shot. Then she hung up, before Renee could reply.

Harm came out of the bathroom dressed in jeans and a T-shirt as Renee was hanging up. “Who was that?” He was annoyed she had answered his phone. And even more annoyed that she had shown up at all.

She had knocked at the door just after he had finished a run and heading toward the shower. Opening the door, he had been astonished to see her. “Renee! What are you doing here?”

“Not a very welcoming greeting for an old friend, Harm.” Without so much as a by your leave she had entered the apartment and sat down on one of the stools at the kitchen island. “How are you?”

“I’m great, thanks. And you?” What he had really wanted to know was why she was here, but he wasn’t rude enough to come out and ask.

“I’ve missed you, Harm.” She had given him a limpid gaze.

‘Oh shit. I hope she doesn’t think…’ Not allowing himself to finish that thought, he had changed the subject quickly, hoping she would take the hint and leave. “Uh…I was just headed to the shower. Maybe we could get together another time?” Still over by the door, he had reached for it to open it for her, when her next sentence had stopped him.

“Oh that’s OK. I’ll wait. I’ve been wanting to see you for a while now, so I can be patient.” She had settled back, obviously planning to stay.

With a defeated sigh, he had turned and escaped to the bathroom to begin cleaning up. As he washed, he thought about how to get her out with a minimum of fuss before Mac called. Their relationship was over, finished, and he wanted nothing to do with her. He wished her well, but had no intention of remaining in contact with her.

Her answer to his question jerked him back to the present and sent his heart plummeting.

“It was Mac.” Renee looked him over as she spoke, remembering the times she had seen him in much less. ”She wanted you to call her when you got a chance, something about a case.” An internal debate about lying had finally resulted in the truth. She feared that Mac would call back and the lie would backfire on her.

“Mac? Oh shit.” Harm rubbed his forehead in frustration. “What did she say?” This was all he needed. Knowing Mac, she was probably mad and was going to let him have it.

“Nothing really. She just asked how I was and asked you to call her when you get a chance.” Renee was beginning to get the picture, but decided to remain hopeful, even if it was just for one night. Cyrus loved her very much and was very affectionate, but he lacked a certain…finesse in the bedroom.

“I’ve got to call her.” Without acknowledging Renee again, he strode over to the phone and dialed Mac’s number, nervously taping his fingers on the phone.

She answered on the first ring. “Hello?” She’d been sitting by the phone, praying he wouldn’t take long to call her, her nerves couldn’t stand it. She trusted him, but the fear that had come over her at Renee’s implications couldn’t be shaken off that easily.

“Mac, it’s Harm. Are you all right?” Please don’t let her be mad, please don’t let her be mad.

“I’m fine, Harm. I was just surprised when Renee answered the phone.” With all her will power Mac tried to control the jealousy and insecurity. She didn’t want to accuse him of anything, but it took all her self-control not to lash out in jealousy.

He relaxed slightly at her calm tone, but sensed the underlying tension. “Yes, I was surprised too.” Grateful for her apparent trust, he considered his options for a moment, then decided that Mac’s feelings were more important than anything else. “Hang on a sec, will you?”

Putting the receiver down, he held it so Mac could hear everything that was said. “Renee, I’m afraid I’m going to be tied up with Mac for a while. Do you mind?”

Not wanting to give up the game easily, Renee stalled. “Well actually, I’m only in town for tonight, and I’d really like to talk to you. I’ll just wait.”

Harm met her gaze unflinchingly. “I’m going to be tied up with Mac for a long time. A very long time.” He paused, letting that statement soak in. “And I don’t think your husband would appreciate our renewing our acquaintance, and I’m damn sure Mac wouldn’t.” His words and eye contact were meaningful, just not in the way Renee had hoped for.

Aware that Mac was listening to every word, Renee tried to salvage the evening she had envisioned. “Cyrus trusts me, Harm. It’s not a problem. And Mac won’t mind if we reminisce a little. Why should she?”

He could not believe this was happening. Renee was definitely not the woman he thought she was. How could he not have known that? “Mac would mind, and so would I.” He wouldn’t touch that part about her husband trusting her, but he felt sorry for the man.

Jealousy overcame Renee’s good sense. “Don’t tell me your dating that…that…mousy marine!”

“I’m not just dating her, Renee; I’m seriously involved with her. And she is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, bar none.” His glare left no room for misinterpretation of that last part.

Thoroughly incensed, she whirled and marched toward the door. “Well it’s your loss, Harm. You could have had me if you weren’t so stupid.”

“I’ve already had you. I thank god everyday I came to my senses and Mac saved me. Good bye Renee.”

She slammed the door on her way out.

“Mac?” He hoped she’d heard everything.

There was no answer at first, then she said softly, “Flyboy, you continually amaze me.”

He laughed. “I should hope so. I amaze myself sometimes.”

“How do you know exactly what to do or say that will make me feel better?”

He laughed again, touched by the sincerity in her question. “It’s a gift.” He paused, then answered more seriously. “It’s payback for all the times I didn’t say or do the things that would have made you feel better. We wasted too many years on fear and misunderstandings, Sarah. I won’t risk anymore.”

He heard a smothered sniff. “Are you crying?”

Another smothered sniff. “No.” But he knew she was.

“Have you caught a cold suddenly?” All he could think of to do was try to make her laugh.

A watery giggle and another sniff. “No.”

“Allergies kick in?”

“Shut up Harm.” She was laughing with him now.

“So how’s the research going? Any luck?” He figured a change in subject was in order, and work was always a safe topic.

“Actually, I have the papers from the Stennis sorted out now. I just need to compare them to the files at NLC.” She still sounded a little funny to him, but he passed it off as still being emotional.

“And how do you plan to do that? You can’t just waltz in there with a big box of papers and start working on it.” His tone was suspicious, as if he knew what she was going to suggest.

A short silence.

“Well, actually, I can.” She tried to keep her tone even, she knew he wasn’t going to like this.

“How?” His clipped question almost made her flinch, but she kept going.

“Well, I could go at night, after everyone is gone.”

He definitely didn’t like where this was going. “You mean break in?”

“Yes.”

As long as he was with her to watch her six, he’d go along with it. “Well, WE could do that tomorrow night.”

“Uh…actually…I have to do it tonight.” She closed her eyes and waited for the argument to come.

“What do you mean, tonight? If you wait until tomorrow I can be there to back you up and help. It’s much safer, Mac, you know that.”

“But tomorrow night is after the Stennis is scheduled to dock. The warehouse will be open late, and there is the possibility that they will work shifts throughout the night to get supplies loaded. It has to be tonight.”

“Mac, you know it’s not safe to go alone. You have no backup. I don’t like it.” Desperately he searched for a way to talk her out of this plan. Intellectually he knew he had no right to stop her, but letting her go went against every instinct he had.

“Harm, if you were here, wouldn’t you do it?”

Her simple question was the straw that broke the camel’s back. “Damn it Mac, that’s not fair. I don’t know what I’d do, and you know you’d try to talk me out of it and wait for you if the situation was reversed. You know as well as I do these people are not playing games, they’ve already killed once. If you get caught, they won’t hesitate to kill again.” He paused to take a quick breath. “And before you say it, I’m not reckless, but this is! We could just subpoena the records from the warehouse; you don’t have to do this. Don’t go risking your neck for nothing! Do you understand me?”

She waited for him to wind down before answering him. “You know as well as I do that by the time a subpoena was issued everyone important would go underground. We have to have the goods on them and find out who ‘they’ are first! And this is not reckless, I’ve been trained, Harm, and done recon work before and you know it. And you know if you were here you’d be going alone, but you wouldn’t even have the decency to tell me about it. You’d just go.”

That shut him up for a second; he knew she was right. “It’s not that I don’t think you’re capable, Mac. Hell, we’ve worked together for years and I know you’re a great officer. But this is different.”

“It’s not different, Harm. I’m still me, and I have a job to do.”

“Don’t you think I know that? I just want to be there, in case there’s trouble. You need back up in these situations. It’s always better that way.”

A vestige of humor showed through in her voice. “I’ll remind you of that when you go off half-cocked on your own, Flyboy.”

“Mac…” He began warningly, but she cut him off.

“Look, Harm. I know you don’t like it, but I have to do it. I promise you, I’ll be careful.”

He gave in to the inevitable. “Call me when you finish - no matter what time it is. I won’t sleep until I know you’re back.”

She gave a little sigh of relief; it wasn’t as bad as she thought it was going to be. “I will. When will you arrive tomorrow?”

“I’ll be there midmorning. I changed my flight to the early morning.”

“Can’t wait to see you, Snookums.”

“Can’t wait to see you either, Pookie.”

“Pookie? Where the hell did you come up with that one?”

“I thought of it all by myself.” His prideful tone made her laugh.

“I’ll call you before I go, OK? But it will be late. I’m not going until after midnight here, which is 0300 your time. And I might not be finished by the time you leave for the airport, so don’t panic if you don’t hear from me.”

“Just promise me you’ll be very careful. I’m kinda used to having you around, Ninja-girl. And I don’t want to break in a new partner.”

She knew he was using humor to cover his worry. “I promise. I love you, Flyboy.”

“I love you. Call me.” It was an order.

“Yes Sir.”

As usual, the ending of the phone call dragged out.

“I guess I should let you go. I’ll see you tomorrow, Harm.”

“Yeah. I really have missed you.”

“I’ve missed you too.”

“Mac?”

“Yes?”

“Seriously, be careful.”

“I will.”

“See you very soon.”

“I’m counting on it.”

They both laughed as they prolonged the call.

“Bye Harm.”

“Bye Mac.”

They hung up.

Harm’s hand lingered on the phone as if trying to hold on to her, worry suffusing his handsome features. He had a bad feeling about Mac’s venture.

Outside NLC

0100 Local

Mac shifted the pack on her back and prepared herself to climb the chain-link fence. The pack contained the papers she needed from the Stennis, a flashlight, and her cell-phone. Dressed in black, her gun in a shoulder holster, she was now fully in “marine” mode. She had debated about bringing the weapon, not wanting to be forced to use it on service members, but as Harm had rather sarcastically pointed out, if they caught her, they would not be saying “Semper Fi”.

A smile crossed her face as she thought of Harm. Once he had accepted the inevitable, he had been fully supportive and helped her make her plan of attack. They had discussed the security at the warehouse in detail. There were no armed guards, as it was in the center of the base, but there still was a large fence covered with razor wire, as well as an alarm system.

The fence was an easy obstacle for her, and she began the climb. Laying the thick blanket she had brought over the razor wire to protect her, she scrambled across with relative ease and lowered herself down the other side of the fence. Stowing the blanket under a convenient bush, she surveyed the buildings in front of her.

The alarm system was a different proposition. She was not an expert in disarming them, and Harm had discouraged an effort in that direction. Learning everything about how to avoid setting off alarms in just an hour or two was not an option. She could use her code to turn it off, but was hoping not to do that. An alarm report would go to Benton the next day with the codes on it showing the opening and closing of the warehouse. If she wanted to maintain her undercover status, she could not afford to use her own code.

It was actually Harm that came up with a solution to the problem. He’d called Webb, who had done a little detective work and had come up with Benton’s alarm code. Once the alarm report was received and Benton realized his code was compromised, all codes would be changed and security procedures overhauled, but she would not be suspect. After all, she was just a Chief Petty Officer. How would she ever get his code?

Taking a quick look around, she chose one of the doors that was not well lit and approached it cautiously, keeping a wary eye out. Punching in the code, she waited until the small light on the alarm box turned green before pushing the door open. Once inside, she locked the door securely and reactivated the alarm. If someone else broke in, she wanted to be aware of it.

The huge warehouse was spooky at night. There were no lights on, of course. She retrieved the flashlight from her pack and flicked it on, being sure to keep it aimed away from windows. Careful to keep quiet, her booted feet made no sound as she crossed the loading bay. The large mechanical doors there reminded her of large, hungry mouths. ‘Stop it’, she scolded herself. ‘You’ve been reading too much Stephen King.’

She crossed to the warehouse area itself, where the material was stored. The warehouse had tall ceilings, at least 50 feet high, and the 8 foot wide shelving units went up at least 30 feet. Loading and unloading the tall shelves was accomplished with forklifts, but the shelves themselves had ladders attached if someone needed to survey them.

There was a main aisle way that went down the center of the warehouse, the shelves forming perpendicular aisle ways on either side of the main one. Most of the aisles were dead ends, but every once in a while on the left aisle there was a door to the outside that opened onto the main parking lot.

Finally she made it the main office door. She opened it and went in, flicking the flashlight off. There were large windows here that opened onto the road. The light from the street gave her just enough illumination to avoid desks and chairs. She took a quick glance at Benton’s office as she crossed to the file room, but the door was closed and no light showed underneath.

The file room was dark, and she did not turn on any lights. She dropped her pack on the table, taking out the flashlight and stack of papers. Using the flashlight, she looked at the first set and walked over to the file cabinets. It was going to be a long night of matching documents.

2 hours later

With a satisfied grin Mac looked over the last of the papers she had brought with her. She had matched every one of them to the files. Requisition orders matched, as well as the associated receiving and shipping documents. But what really made her happy was the other pile of papers she had.

This stack was made up of requisitions and shipping documents to the Stennis that had no matching documents. They were fakes. Someone was creating false requisitions and using them to ship out aircraft parts from the warehouse. She’d finally found the proof that something was actually being stolen.

It was the first step, but it was a big one. A comparison of other aircraft carrier’s documents to the warehouse documents would probably reveal even more theft. Now, they still had to figure out where the material went, and who was involved in the theft, but that was a step that would be taken later. First, she had to get this material back to JAG, and make her report to Harm.

Pulling out her cell phone, she quickly dialed Harm’s number. His voice mail picked up. Cursing softly, she realized he was already at the airport and his cell was turned off. She left him a message, knowing he would check it immediately upon landing in San Diego. “Hey Flyboy, I’ve got it. Documents have been falsified and we can prove it. I’m finished at the warehouse and on my way home. Can’t wait to see you.”

She clicked the cell phone shut and began packing the papers in her backpack. She thought about calling the Admiral to report, but that could wait until she got to her apartment. And then she could report in full without worrying about discovery.

The sound of a door opening in the main office made her freeze momentarily, and then she moved as quickly and quietly as she possibly could. Turning off the flashlight, she stuffed it, along with all the papers and her cell phone, into the backpack and slipped it on.

A line of light appeared under the door, bringing her heart to her throat. Someone had turned the lights on in the main office. She thanked God she had thought to reactivate the alarm. If she’d left it off, whoever was there would have instantly suspected an intruder. Going to the door, she pressed her ear against it, trying to hear who might be here, but there was no sound.

She took a quick glance around the darkened room, but there was no place to hide and no way to get out. The file room was really a glorified closet with no windows. Her only escape was through the main office and into the warehouse.

She listened for 6 minutes and 25 seconds before making her move. Cautiously, she turned the handle on the door and cracked it open. She could see no one. Opening the door a little further, she looked out more fully. It was Benton.

She pulled her head in quickly, her heart thundering in her chest. Shit. Shit. Shit.

Taking a deep breath to fortify her nerves, she looked out again. Benton was sitting in his office, his door looking out directly on the path to the warehouse door. As she watched, he reached out and picked up the phone and dialed a number.

He swiveled his chair around so that his back was to his door, and seized the opportunity. Her tension was high as she quickly ran across the room. She could hear him talking as she crossed. “Yeah, it’s all set up. The guys will be here any minute and we’ll start the loading. It shouldn’t take long.”

A rumble stopped her in her tracks. She was pressed against the wall out of his sight, almost to the warehouse door. She recognized that rumble. It was the main warehouse doors being raised. Someone was already out there.

Staying where she was was not an option. It would lead to discovery as soon as Benton walked out of his office. Her only choice was to keep going and hope that the warehouse people were busy and wouldn’t notice her.

As silently as possible she finished the short journey to the warehouse door and cracked it open. Benton was hanging up; she didn’t have much time. Stealthily she slipped through the door and hurried to stand at the edge of one of the shelves, out of sight of the loading bays. She could hear the forklifts being started and knew she still didn’t have much time to escape.

There was no way to make it down the main aisle without being spotted, and the exit doors that lead to the parking lot were not a good choice. The parking lot was well lit and overlooked by the main office. She would be seen trying to get out.

She looked around, desperately trying to figure out a way out. Then it hit her. She didn’t have to get out. She could just hide until they finished. They would have to be done by the time the regular crew showed up at 0700. If she could get close enough, she might even learn their destination.

She definitely couldn’t stay where she currently was. Benton might exit the office at any time and see her. She needed to find a place where she could see and hear what was going on, but wouldn’t be seen.

Taking another look down the aisle, she moved carefully to the next shelf, taking care to be quiet. 3 minutes later she was halfway down the aisle when she heard the main office door open.

Hurriedly she moved back into the side aisle, panicking as the sound Benton’s footsteps neared her. She looked frantically around, and seeing a ladder attached to the shelves immediately began climbing it. As Benton passed her, she was several feet above him and frozen in fear. He passed her by without seeing her.

The relief was so great she almost fell off the ladder, but she forced herself up to the top shelf and settled herself behind some boxes. That near discovery had really scared her, and her hands were shaking. She took a few minutes to calm down, secure that she wouldn’t be discovered.

She could hear shouts between the men loading the truck that had been backed up to the loading bay, but couldn’t make out the words. They had started up the forklifts, and the engine noise drowned them out. She was going to have to move closer. Scouting out the area surrounding her, she looked at the shelf across the aisle.

There was a space between some large boxes; she could just squeeze through. She glanced down at the very long drop to the cement floor, then back across. It was about a 5 foot gap. She’d made longer jumps at boot camp, but there had always been some kind of safety net.

Gathering her courage, she checked to see if anyone was looking up, and then made the leap.

She landed on the edge of the shelf, teetering backwards precariously before managing to pull herself in and crouch between the boxes. Luckily the shelves were solidly built and heavily loaded. The soft thump of her boots was camouflaged by the sound of the forklifts, and the shelves never even moved when she hit.

Again she crouched between the boxes, sweating now, in spite of the chill in the air. There were 6 more shelves between her and the loading bay. Before she could chicken out, she forced herself to begin. On the fourth jump her luck finally ran out.

Her boot just missed the edge of the shelf, and she started to fall, but caught the edge of the shelf with her right hand. She managed to catch the edge with her left hand as well, and was dangling precariously when 2 men walked beneath her and lit up cigarettes.

Silently cursing, she hung there motionless as the men struck up a conversation right below her. Praying for strength, she hung on as best she could. She could only catch snatches of the conversation, the forklifts that hid the sound of her jumping also hiding their conversation. “Almost done…landing strip…too damn early” were the only phrases she heard.

Finally the men dropped the cigarettes and walked back toward the truck. Not a minute too soon as far as she was concerned. Her hands were sweating and her strength was running out. She wasn’t sure she had the energy to pull herself up onto the shelf, and checked out the shelf below her. It was about 6 feet down. She did her best to not look at the 30-foot drop to the floor.

Swinging her legs in, she managed to land again between 2 boxes. She fell to her knees, trembling and sweating bullets. She was getting way too old for this shit. Her head popped up as the forklifts finally were shut off and Benton’s voice rang out clearly. “OK, we’re loaded. Everyone to the main office for a quick briefing and then you’ll get underway.”

She counted them as the passed the shelf she was hiding on. Benton, 4 men she didn’t recognize, and Sanders? What the hell was he doing here? As they entered the main office she made a quick decision, hoping she wasn’t going to regret it.

Climbing down, she hurried over to the loaded truck. First she checked the cab, searching for anything that would give her a clue as to where they were taking the cargo. Finding nothing, she headed around to the trailer and climbed in. Maybe there were papers attached to the pallets.

She made her way back into the truck trailer, going over each pallet carefully, but found nothing to indicate the destination. She was about to climb down and get out when she heard voices. They were coming back.

There was nowhere close for her to hide. She did the only thing possible. Squeezing back into the trailer, she tried to find a comfortable position between two pallets as they closed and locked the doors to the trailer.

It looked like she wasn’t going to see Harm this morning. She was going on a little ride first.

San Diego International Airport

Monday

0745 Local

Harm exited the plane and made his way up to the terminal, eager to check his cell phone for a message from Mac. The 5-hour flight had been smooth, but he’d been unable to sleep because of his worry for her. He’d hoped to hear from her before he left for the airport, but had known that was unlikely.

As soon as he was clear of the rest of the passengers, he dropped his computer and carryon. Pulling out his cell and turning it on, his heart gave a bound as soon as he saw the little emblem denoting a message waiting.

Quickly retrieving the message, he listened and gave a sigh of relief. Thank God it was done. Checking the time, he dialed her apartment number, hoping to catch her before she went in to work. Disappointed when he got no answer, concern began to nag at him. She should have called when she got home.

Debating with himself for a minute, he finally dialed JAG headquarters. More than likely she had checked in with the Admiral to update him with her news.

“JAG Headquarters, PO Tiner speaking. How can I help you?”

“Tiner, it’s Commander Rabb. Let met speak to the Admiral, please.”

“Aye Sir, Hold on please.”

“Chegwidden.” The Admiral’s gruff voice answered.

“Sir, It’s Commander Rabb. I’ve just landed in San Diego, Sir. Have you heard from the Colonel?” Worry made Harm short and to the point.

“No, but I didn’t expect to. Is there a problem?” AJ was also to the point.

“I don’t know, Sir. Last night she broke into the warehouse to match the documents from the Stennis to the warehouse files. She left a message on my cell phone saying that she had the evidence and was heading back to her apartment, but she never called again. I thought maybe she checked in with you.” Harm was trying to conceal his worry, but not doing a very good job.

“She broke into the warehouse? What the hell are you talking about?”

Harm took a breath as explained more fully. “She received the documents from the Stennis, but had to compare them to the warehouse documents. She insisted she couldn’t wait for me to go in with her tonight. The Stennis is docking today, and the warehouse would be open late, possibly all night as they loaded supplies for her. She had to go last night.”

‘Damn stubborn Jarhead’ thought AJ to himself. “But she left you a message on your cell?”

“Yes Sir. She said she had found the evidence we were looking for, and that she was finishing up and heading home. But she normally would have called again when she got home. And there was no answer when I tried to call.”

AJ thought rapidly before answering. “Let’s not jump to conclusions, Commander. Check at the NLC warehouse. More than likely she is there, maintaining her cover.” It was unlike Mac not to have reported in to him given the importance of her discovery, but it was possible. “And if she’s not, find out where she is.”

“Yes Sir.”

“And Commander? Report in as soon as you know something.” AJ masked his concern with a businesslike attitude that Harm saw through easily

“Yes Sir. And if she’s not there?” In reality Harm was asking to break her cover if necessary, not for permission to look for her.

“My Chief of Staff’s safety is top priority. I want her found immediately. If her cover has to be broken, so be it.”

“I’ll be in touch, Sir.”

As Harm shut his cell phone, he rapidly went over his plans. Picking up his carryon and computer, he headed for baggage claim and the rental cars. Instead of checking in with the Base Command as normal protocol required, he would go straight to the Naval Logistics Center.

God help Mac if she was there; he was going to kick her six for not checking in with him. And if he was any judge, the Admiral was going to as well.

And God help him if she wasn’t there.

One hour later

North Island NAS

Naval Logistics Center

Harm pulled into the parking lot and looked around anxiously before realizing he didn’t know what Mac drove. He wouldn’t be able to recognize her car. Quickly he got out and strode toward the door.

Entering the office, he quickly scanned for Mac, but didn’t see her. There were several people; all milling around busily, but none looked familiar.

“May I help you Sir? I’m Lieutenant Sanders.” A friendly looking Lieutenant greeted him. He recognized the name from Mac.

“I’m Commander Rabb, from JAG. I’m looking for Commander Benton.” As much as Harm wanted to tear through the place shouting for Mac, he still had to maintain the illusion that he was here to investigate the death of Linda Charles. For the moment.

“Follow me, Sir. I’ll take you to his office. Would you like some coffee?”

“No thanks.” All Harm wanted to do was find Mac; he wasn’t interested in any social amenities.

Sanders must have recognized his determination. “Right this way then, Sir.” The lieutenant led him to Benton’s office.

Sanders knocked at the door and stuck his head in. “Sir, there’s a Commander Rabb here to see you. From JAG.”

“Send him in.” Sanders opened the door and gestured Harm in, obviously hanging around and hoping to be included in the conversation.

Harm stepped into the office and took his first look at Benton. At first glance, Mac’s description of cold seemed to fit him. But a second look revealed a harried look in the man’s eyes. Benton stood as he entered the office.

“Commander.” Benton acknowledged him. Harm shut the door in Sander’s face.

“Commander Benton, I’m here to investigate the death of PO Charles.” Again Harm went straight to the point. “I’ll need to talk to you and a few of your personnel.”

Surprise crossed the other man’s face at his statement. “I thought her death was declared a suicide.” Benton gestured for Harm to sit down.

As he took his seat, Harm pulled out a notebook, pretending to refer to notes. “Her parents requested a more in depth investigation. They don’t believe it was suicide.”

“I see.” If Benton was rattled, he concealed it well. “Well, I’m not sure what I can do to help, but I’ll cooperate in any way I can.”

“I believe the last person to see PO Charles alive was a…” Harm checked his notes again. “A Chief Petty Officer Miles. I would like to interview her first.” He forced himself to remain calm as he asked for Mac, and prayed that she would just be there.

Benton looked nonplused for a moment. “Well, Chief Miles is unavailable right now. Maybe you could start with someone else?” Harm felt the nagging concern blossom into outright fear at this statement.

“What do you mean, unavailable? This should have top priority, Commander.” Harm concealed the fear with a steely glare at the younger man.

Benton was trapped. He didn’t know where Chief Miles was, and he was afraid to lie. Her disappearance might have nothing to do with his operation. On the other hand, it might, he wasn’t sure. “All I know is that she didn’t show up for work this morning. I tried calling her at home, but there was no answer.”

“Have you reported her UA?”

Flustered now, Benton answered with an explanation. “Well, no, I haven’t. I was trying to give her a chance to come in without reporting her.”

Harm regarded the man in front of him silently, and thought about his next step carefully. His silent study appeared to make the man sweat.

As he was about to open his mouth, his cell phone rang. Pulling it out, he checked the caller id before answering, relief washing over him as he recognized Mac’s number. Hurriedly he answered it. “Mac?”

“Harm?” He could barely hear her; there was some kind of interference.

“Mac, where are you?” Relief made him speak sharply and loudly.

He can only catch short phrases between the crackling. “…Not sure…truck…Benton is in on it…” Then nothing. “Damn it!” Quickly dialing her number, her voice mail picked up. He cut the connection with another curse.

Looking up, he saw that Benton was watching him, alarmed. Shooting the man a glare, he dialed JAG headquarters. Tiner put him through to the Admiral immediately.

“What is it Commander?”

“Mac is not at NLC, Admiral, but I just had a call from her. There was a lot of interference, but I got one thing from her for sure.” Pinning the man in front of him with a steely gaze, he continued his conversation. “Benton is in on it.”

Benton paled at his words, and made a move to get up. At Harm’s angry look, he subsided, dropping his head into his hands.

“Did she say where she was?”

“I think she tried, but the connection was bad, and then we were cut off.”

“Where’s Benton now?”

“Right in front of me, Sir.”

“Get all the information you can. Do whatever’s necessary.”

“I will, Sir.”

“Call me after you get everything out of the bastard.”

“Aye Sir.”

Harm hung up the phone and stared at the shaken man in front of him. “OK Benton. It’s truth time. Chief Miles is actually Lieutenant Colonel Sarah Mackenzie, a JAG officer. She’s been investigating this warehouse for theft. Now she’s missing, and I want to know where she is.” He stood up, looming over Benton, and punched his fist on the desk. “NOW!”

Benton jumped at the sound of his fist on the desk, and then leaned back away from Harm. “I don’t know anything.”

Harm reached over and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him roughly to him. Enunciating clearly and as threateningly as he knew how, he bit out, “I don’t think you understand me, Benton. I want to know where she is, and I want to know NOW!”

The man broke into pieces before his eyes. “I’ll tell you everything I know. But I don’t know where she is…honestly.”

Harm threw him back in his chair disgustedly. “Start talking.”

Benton threw him a scared look, but was interrupted by a knock at the door. Straightening up, he called out shakily, “Enter.”

Sanders opened the door. “Sir, just checking to see if you need anything.”

Benton didn’t look at Harm. “No thank you Lieutenant. That’ll be all.”

“But…”

“Dismissed Lieutenant.”

Sanders looked resentful, but nodded. “Aye Sir.” He turned and left.

Benton looked at Harm again.

“I’m waiting, Benton.”

45 minutes later

Benton had spilled the whole story. An Admiral had approached him approximately 8 months ago. There was a lot of money to be made, and he needed Benton. Benton had at first refused, but the Admiral had threatened his daughter’s life if he didn’t cooperate. When his daughter had a slight “accident”, he had caved.

The Admiral had supplied him with the necessary requisitions. All he had to do was fill the “order”. The trucks arrived and took the aircraft parts to an undisclosed location. Benton had no idea where they went or who they were for. And he didn’t know where Mac was.

Harm finally interrupted the narrative with one question. “Who’s the Admiral?”

Benton looked at him with fearful eyes. “Admiral Sanders.”

“Admiral Sanders of Cincpac?” This was very scary news. Admiral Sanders was a very powerful man, and his arm extended well into this base.

Benton merely nodded.

“Did you kill Linda Charles?”

Benton shook his head at that. “No, but Sanders did.”

Harm just looked at him. “You expect me to believe that Admiral Sanders waltzed in and killed a petty officer himself?”

“Not Admiral Sanders. Lieutenant Sanders. His son.”

There was another knock at the door. “Sir, I’m sorry to interrupt, but there is a man out here insisting on seeing Commander Rabb.”

Benton glanced at Harm for approval. Harm suspected who it was, and nodded.

“Show him in Lieutenant.”

“Thought you could use some assistance in this, Rabb.” Webb’s sardonic voice broke in. “What’s new?”

Back inside the trailer

shut inside the truck, Mac tried to figure out what to do next. There wasn’t much she could do, she realized with some dismay. Aside from the fact the trailer was already unbearably hot and dark, it apparently lacked anything resembling shock absorbers. The rough jostling forcing her to brace herself against the pallets. Of course, she had not idea how long the ride was going to be, or what the destination was.

The struggle to get her backpack off left her sweating and swearing quietly. Squeezed between two pallets, she barely had room to move, much less maneuver her pack around. 9 minutes of wrestling finally allowed her access to it.

Pulling out her cell, she dialed Harm’s number, desperately hoping he was off the plane. He should actually be at Base Command checking in, but flight delays were always possible. She offered up a short prayer as the ringing began.

Her heart leaped when she heard his voice. “Mac?”

Sheesh, the connection was terrible. She could barely hear him. “Harm?”

“…Are you?” The interference was cutting off his words, but it wasn’t hard to figure that question out. “I’m not sure. I’m OK for right now, but I’m in the back of a truck. I had to get in one of last night’s delivery trucks to escape detection. Harm, Benton is in on it. He was in charge…” The connection ended without warning. Cursing softly again, she checked the signal emblem on the display. There was no signal. Sighing with frustration, she flipped the phone shut and put it back in the pack.

The truck slowed down with a lurch, throwing her painfully against some boxes. Surprised, she consulted her internal clock. They had only been on the road 37 minutes. She had expected at least a couple of hours to get out of the populated area. The truck jerked forward, throwing her the other way. A slow progression of jerking stops and starts began. Obviously they were in traffic of some sort. Not an altogether unexpected occurrence in San Diego.

When the truck stopped again and the engine shut off, she scrambled madly for the back of the truck, crouching down behind the pallet farthest away from the doors. 2 slams that shivered through the trailer let her know that the driver and passenger had exited the truck. Muted voices again as they apparently walked around to the opening of the trailer.

The door was unlocked and opened with a series of clicks and bangs. Her heart in her mouth, Mac waited tensely. She was hoping for some kind of break to get out unobserved, as unlikely as that seemed.

A southern male voice caught her attention. “Well, y’alls papers are all in order. You ain’t got nothing illegal in there, do ya?”

“Billy, you ask us that every time we cross the border, and the answer is always the same. Of course not. Check it all out if you want.”

A deep laugh went along with the answer. “Nah, it’s too hot. Y’all go on through. Say, are y’all stopping in Tijuana? You could take a message to a little senorita there for me.”

“Not this trip.”

“Too bad. See ya’ll in a couple of days.”

“So long Billy.”

The trailer doors were closed and locked. Mac sat still, mostly in shock. Oh shit. They were going into Mexico. For a brief minute she allowed herself to feel fear, before swallowing it down. She had no water or supplies, and it was going to get damn hot in this godforsaken trailer. She would be in a foreign country with no money and no id. On top of that, she had to get out of this truck without them seeing her. Shit. If she actually got out of this, Harm was never going to let her call him reckless again. Shit.

Meanwhile, back at the warehouse

for some reason, Harm wasn’t surprised to see Webb. Somehow, when things were going the worst, he always showed up. He stood up and greeted Webb. “Nice to see you Webb. And yes, I can use some help investigating the death of Linda Charles.” He let his eyes flicker to Sanders, standing behind Webb, obviously wondering what was going on.

Webb picked up on it without missing a beat. “Good. Linda was a friend of mine. I have a hard time believing she committed suicide.” He set his briefcase on the floor.

Harm turned to Benton. “Commander Benton, this is Clayton Webb. He is a civilian attorney with JAG.” The lie came easily to him, and Webb merely grinned at him, amused at his invention. Oh, if AJ could only hear this!

“Mr. Webb, nice to meet you. That will be all, Lieutenant.” For being in an absolute panic, Benton was covering well and following Harm’s lead without question.

“Aye Sir.” The warning look that Sanders shot Benton did not go unnoticed by either Clay or Harm, but neither one acknowledged it. Sanders shut the door as he left.

There was a short silence as Webb sized up Benton before turning to Harm. “So what do you have so far?” He wasn’t going spoil Harm’s prevarication until Harm gave him the all clear.

Harm gestured to a seat as he took his. “Sit down Clay and I’ll fill you in.” Benton sat down as well, his hands trembling slightly as he played with a pencil.

“Mac’s missing.” Harm couldn’t stop himself from uttering the words. On a professional level, he knew that that was not the most important aspect of the case, but he couldn’t help it. It was the most important thing to him; everything else was secondary. And he knew the Admiral felt the same way.

Instantly Webb’s smirking grin changed to shock and then concern. “What? What happened?” In spite of their arguments, or maybe because of them, Webb had always considered Mac a friend. Not to mention being a 7.6 on the Richter scale.

“She was here on an investigation, undercover, following up on some missing inventory. She broke into the warehouse last night to research documents. Apparently she hit the jackpot, but she’s disappeared. The only thing I know is that she called me, told me Benton here is in on it, and she’s on a truck. Then we got cut off.”

Webb glanced over at Benton, sizing him up again. He had held up well while Sanders was present, but he was obviously cracking. His concerned gaze returned to Harm. “Is that it?”

Benton finally broke in. “Commander Rabb, I’ll cooperate with you fully, but please, can you protect my daughter? She’s only 8. She lives with her Mother in San Francisco. Please.” He drew a ragged breath. “I’ll take my punishment, but she has a whole life to lead,”

Harm ignored him for the moment. “I can’t trust anyone here on base. According to him,” he jerked his head towards Benton; “Admiral Sanders of Cincpac is behind all this. There’s no telling who’s in it with him.”

Clay gave a low whistle of appreciation. “Sanders, he’s a big fish. What kind of inventory are we talking about?”

“Aircraft parts.” Clay didn’t look surprised.

“You knew about this,” Harm accused.

“Commander, please! I’ll do anything you want…just protect my little girl.” Benton was pleading now, desperate.

Both Clay and Harm continued to ignore him.

Webb answered Harm’s accusation. “I’ve been working on it from the other end. Iran has suddenly got old aircraft flying again. They had a lot of American planes from when the Shaw was in power, but couldn’t get parts for them anymore. Suddenly F-14’s started flying over there. I had a lead to check out over here. Last night I spoke with AJ, he mentioned you and Mac were here and maybe we should join forces.”

“Iran? Son of a bitch! This is not just theft of property, it’s high treason!”

Both men turned cold eyes on Benton, but it was Harm who spoke. “Benton, I don’t give a rat’s ass about you. You sold out your country, are responsible for the death of one person here, possibly more, and betrayed that uniform.”

“I didn’t know! You have to believe me, I didn’t know! It was for the sake of my daughter! They threatened her!” Benton’s voice rose in anxiety. “I had no choice, they were going to kill her!”

“And you received no payment for this treason, is that right?” Harm’s glacial tone would have frozen flame. “That’s the only reason you did it.” Clay was a little surprised at Harm’s indifference of the daughter’s fate until he caught his eye.

Benton flushed and looked down. “No, I’ve gotten paid. A lot. But I’ll return all the money, just protect her. Please.”

“Where is Mac?” That was the key to everything. If she was on one of the trucks, she was on her way to an exchange point. They could round up everybody from there. And he wanted to make sure she was safe. He’d held it together very well so far, but worry for her was eating him up inside. His only hope to locate her and bring her in safely was to solve the case.

“I swear I don’t know. They never told me where they are taking the parts. I’m just a middleman, I didn’t need to know.” Benton’s eyes met Harm’s in anguished appeal. “Please…my daughter.”

“When’s the next shipment?” Webb broke in.

“One is going out this afternoon. You could follow it.” Benton was broken completely now. “I’ll do anything you want.”

Webb met Harm’s blue gaze, waiting for the go ahead. Harm nodded. “OK Benton. Give me her name and address, her school, etc. I’ll get some people over to get her to a safe house. As long as you help us, she’s safe. You double-cross us…” Clay let his voice trail away, not actually uttering the threat.

“I know…you don’t have to say it.” Benton was practically crying in relief. “Her name is…”

Harm’s attention wandered as Benton gave the details about his daughter to Clay. ‘Damn it all, how could she get herself into this? Where the hell could she be?’ He leaned his elbows on his knees and stared at the carpet lost in thought. ‘She’s got to be OK. If she gets hurt…or…anything…I’m going to kick her six.’ He promised himself angrily. ‘And she calls ME reckless.’ He tried her cell phone one more time. Nothing.

“Harm!” Clay’s voice jerked him sharply back to attention. “She’s covered.” Clay was hanging up his cell phone.

Harm scrubbed his face and forced himself to concentrate on the case. “OK. We have to track that truck. When is it going out?”

Benton checked his watch. “They should be loading it now. Normally, we wouldn’t do this doing the normal hours of operation, but they had a big rush on this.”

Clay opened his briefcase and took out a small electronic device. “Can you get this on the truck? It’s a tracking device. It has a 2 mile radius.” He handed the device over to Benton. “It’s magnetic, just attach it to any metal part.”

Benton took the part and looked it over, then stuck it in his pocket. “I’ll take care of it.”

“Let’s go, Clay. We’ll get out of here now and give you a clear field. Don’t screw this up, Benton.” Harm gave him a warning glare.

“I won’t. You may not believe this, Commander, but I’m relieved this is going to be over. And my daughter is going to be safe.” Benton’s gaze was still nervous, but there was truth in his eyes.

Harm nodded.

“Sanders doesn’t know what we’ve been talking about. I suggest you tell him we were discussing PO Charles, and various personnel who might have had a grudge against her. Don’t mention anything about PO Miles if you can help it.”

“OK.”

48 minutes later
Clay’s SUV

“Nice car, Webb.” Harm finally spoke as they began moving. They had barely spoken while waiting for the truck to take off. Webb was aware of Harm’s distress, but had decided to let him brood for the moment. He was busy playing with the buttons of the tracker’s receiver, built into the dashboard.

“Thanks. It’s…uh…standard JAG issue.” Amusement glinted in Clay’s eyes as he glanced at Harm. “Don’t you have one?”

Harm actually managed to laugh. “No, I must work at the wrong JAG. I’ll speak to Admiral Chegwidden about it immediately.”

“He might be surprised to know I’m an attorney and working for him.” Both men laughed as they thought about AJ’s reaction to that.

“Sorry, it’s all I could think of at the moment.” Harm sobered for a moment. “I’m glad you’re here, Clay. I’d hate to be all alone in this.” It was uncharacteristic of either man to actually admit they liked working with each other.

“Hey, I wouldn’t have missed it for the world. I’ll get to be the hero that rescues Mac, the fair damsel in distress!” Both men laughed again, knowing exactly what Mac would say to that.

“She’ll be all right, Harm.” For some reason, Clay’s sure tone calmed Harm. Then he could hear the smile in Clay’s voice. “She’s a marine, you know.”

“I know.”

“I take it you finally got your head out of your ass about her?” The wry teasing tone that Clay used made Harm roll his eyes.

“Yes, finally. So hand’s off, Mr. Hero.” Harm grinned at Clay, knowing Clay had always admired Mac but would never actually make a move. Clay grinned back.

As they followed the truck, both men settled in for the ride. Harm just kept reminding himself. ‘She’s a marine, she can take care of herself.

Back inside the trailer
2 hours 37 minutes later

Mac didn’t know how much longer she could last and still stay coherent. The heat was excruciating, draining every bit of energy she possessed. With absolutely no breath of wind inside the trailer, it had to be in excess of 120 degrees. Her black jeans and sweatshirt did not help matters. If she could have maneuvered, she would have stripped down. She was dripping wet with sweat, even her hair was soaked, and she was dying from thirst.

On top of that, every muscle in her body ached. The road was full of potholes and the driver apparently aimed for them all. And he managed to hit them all at top speed, throwing her repeatedly against the back of the trailer and the pallets. She was sure her entire body was covered with bruises.

In a way she was grateful for the rough ride though. At least it kept her awake. The incredible heat threatened to dehydrate her and make her pass out. As it was, she was in a kind of stupor, just barely managing to stay conscious. She longed for an end to the continuous torture, no matter what the end entailed. Any change would be a relief.

She was jerked back to total awareness when the truck finally shuddered to a stop. The twin slams of the driver and passenger doors alerted her that something was up. She prayed that she was finally going to get out of this hellhole. She checked one last time for a cell phone signal as she had done periodically during the ride. Still nothing - not really a surprise by this time.

The clang of the trailer doors being unlocked and opened was a welcome sound, but she was not quite ready to surrender yet. Remaining hidden behind the back pallet, she welcomed the rush of hot air into the trailer. Even if it was hot, at least it was some kind air movement.

She knew she was in no shape for a fight. She was weak and shaky, she feared she was barely able to stand, much less beat anybody up. Never the less, she drew her weapon from the shoulder holster and readied herself as best she could.

As the doors opened, she was treated to another conversation between the two men who had brought her to this place. “Let’s get this unloaded quick. It’s hot as hell and I wanna get a drink of something cold,” one of the men said. ‘Oh God, I want something cold to drink too. It IS hot as hell.’ Mac silently agreed.

“Right,” the other guy answered. “I’m with you.”

There was a short silence, and then the familiar sound of a forklift started. Frantically Mac tried to think everything through one more time, looking for a way out she might have missed. The only hope she had was the element of surprise. It was evident they didn’t suspect her presence. If she could just pop out unexpectedly, she might be able to get the drop on them.

As the forklift began removing pallets, she tried to get a quick glimpse outside her hot prison, but could see nothing but a blank wall. Not exactly the best thing, but she guessed it could be worse. It could be a large gun pointed directly at her. She sighed, realizing that her one quick look wasn’t enough, she really didn’t know what was out there.

The forklift was nearing the truck to remove another pallet when the motor suddenly cut off. “Hey Joe! I’m beat and it’s just too hot! Let’s take a break!”

“Yeah, in the office. It’s air-conditioned in there.”

She could hear the footsteps of the men as they faded away.

Slowly and quietly she made her way through the trailer, forcing her body between the pallets. Listening for anything that might indicate another person’s presence, she took a fast look around. She couldn’t believe her luck!

It was another large warehouse, apparently empty. Finally she was getting a break. She jumped down out of the truck on shaky legs, scanning the area, pistol in hand. The warehouse was a good deal smaller than the ones at NLC. Still, it had tall shelves and she moved over to them, crouching down to hide as much as possible.

That’s when her eyes landed on the water cooler. It seemed to taunt her with its nearness. She could almost hear the sound of a mountain stream as she gazed at the clear liquid. She knew she couldn’t last much longer without water. It had been almost 16 hours since she’d had anything to drink, and the long hot ride had further dehydrated her. She decided to risk it.

Holstering her weapon, she made her way cautiously to the cooler. The water tasted like sheer heaven as the cool liquid soothed her dry throat. The second cup she just poured over her head, reveling in the sensation as it dribbled down underneath the sweatshirt.

“HEY! What are you doing?” A rough voice called out. A man, in his late thirties approached her. Heavyset and dark, he didn’t look friendly. At her stupefied look he repeated the question harshly. “I asked you, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”

An idea popped into her head. “Wow, I’m glad somebody’s here! I was lost out there and stumbled on this place. Can you guys let me use your phone?” She gave a guileless smile.

“What?” The idiot seemed perplexed by her question.

“I’ve been out there in that heat forever. I got separated from my friends…we were hiking.” Mac was improvising as she went along, and tried to stop herself from babbling. “All I need is a phone, can I use yours and wait here for them? At least it’s out of the heat.”

“Well…uh…I guess so.” Fatface (as she termed him in her head) looked her over and finally noticed the gun holstered at her shoulder. “You’re carrying a gun!” He seemed surprised by this revelation.

“Well of course. Would you go wandering around out there without one? Sheesh, you could run into some bad people. A girl’s got to protect herself, you know.” Mac batted her eyes at him and gave him another sweet smile. ‘God, I can’t believe he’s falling for this!’

Another guy walked back, taller and thinner than Fatface. Slimjim looked familiar to her, but she couldn’t place him at first. She turned to the cooler with a growing anxiety. Slimjim worked at the warehouse. She could only hope he wouldn’t remember her.

“What’s going on out here? Who’s that Joe?” Slimjim’s voice revealed a slightly higher intelligence than Fatface.

“Don’t know. She says she’s lost and needs the phone. But she’s got a gun.” Fatface almost sounded like he was whining.

Mac began filling another cupful of water. “Oh for god’s sake. It’s a desert out there, I had to carry something with me.” She took another long drink, still relishing the coolness of the water. It also shielded her face from Slimjim.

Slimjim was eyeing her suspiciously. “I know you from somewhere.”

“Naaa. I just have one of those faces, you know?” Mac turned around to fill the water again, still trying to hide as much as possible.

Suddenly the light bulb in Slimjim’s head went on. “You’re Chief Miles! What the…” He broke off abruptly as Mac turned back around quickly. In one smooth move she dropped the cup of water and pulled her pistol out and aimed it at them.

“OK Boys, we need to have a little talk, and then you need to do what I tell you. Clear?” Mac used her “marine” voice to get their attention. She was still shaky, and couldn’t afford to let them know it.

Fatface and Slimjim both stared at the gun in her hands before their eyes shifted to her face. They were almost comical in their surprise. Slimjim tried his hand at a little persuasion. “Come on Chief, there’s no need for violence here. I was just surprised to see you. Put the gun down.”

As he spoke, Slimjim was edging closer to her when her cold voice stopped him. “I wouldn’t do that. I am perfectly capable of shooting you. I don’t even think I would regret it.” Mac tried to decide what to do next. As inconvenient as it was, she needed to sit down. The water had refreshed her somewhat, but the dehydration had definitely taken its toll, along with the lack of sleep and stress. Her vision grayed for a moment, and she shook her head to clear her vision.

The sound of a door opening somewhere and approaching footsteps momentarily distracted her. It was then that Slimjim made his move. Jumping forward, he managed to knock the gun out of her hand; her grip had been unsteady at best.

Before he could follow up on his advantage, she kneed him as hard as she could in the groin. Not the flashiest of her moves, but certainly effective. He dropped like a stone, clutching himself, no sound escaping from his moving lips.

Fatface had been taken by surprise, but as Slimjim dropped he moved in, albeit a little more cautiously. He also yelled for help. “Hey! Over here quick! We’ve got an intruder.” The sound of a door crashing open and several feet running made Mac’s decision for her. It was time to run. She executed a fast roundhouse kick to Fatface’s head and then took off for the open warehouse door where the truck was backed up for unloading.

As she jumped down off the loading bay, a bullet richoted off the truck near her head. She landed on her feet and kept running. There were shouts behind her, yelling at her to stop, but she ignored them. Without knowing where she should go, she automatically chose the course with the most cover. She circled back around the warehouse and stopped in surprise. She found herself overlooking a long landing strip. Definitely no place to hide there.

She continued on as fast as she could along the back of the building, sound of pursuit making the adrenaline pump faster in her veins. Pausing as she rounded the building again, she took stock of her surroundings.

As far as she could see, desert was everywhere. The road stretched out into the distance, no traffic marring the perfectly flat surface. There were some very big mountains in the distance; they looked to be a few miles off.

Knowing the mountains were her best bet, she headed off that way; diving into some scrub bush as she heard her pursuers behind her. “Spread out, she can’t have gotten far.” As far as she could see, there were 4 of them, not including her 2 pals, Fatface and Slimjim. Shit. The odds were not going in her favor.

She tried to make herself as small as possible, crouching down into the bushes. She was already breathing hard, but her adrenaline was still keeping her going. She just hoped it stayed with her for a little while longer. Evading these guys was not going to be easy.

The search was taking them nearer her hiding place. Knowing that discovery was eminent; she took a few deep breaths and tried to prime herself for her next run. She doubted she could really outrun them, but she’d be damned if she’d just give in. They’d have to work to catch her.

As quietly as possible she moved from bush to bush. She almost giggled as she remembered an old Bugs Bunny cartoon, one where Bugs was hiding from Elmer Fudd. One of Bug’s feet would tiptoe out, sneaking from tree to tree, the leg lengthening impossibly. Once the hiding place was found, the rest of Bug’s would just pop into place.

‘Stay on track’ she admonished herself sternly. She couldn’t afford to let her concentration fall off. Slowly, she was heading away from the search. She estimated that she was about 20 feet from the nearest man when one of them saw her. “There she is!”

All hope of concealment gone, she leaped to her feet and took off again at top speed, heading deeper into the desert and rougher country. She didn’t hear them behind her, and hope began to blossom that she might actually escape them when a shot rang out.

The burning pain took her breath away. The shot made her stumble, and she frantically tried to stay on her feet when she came up on the edge of an arroyo, hidden by scrub. Her forward momentum carried her over the edge before she could stop. She tumbled into the abyss, head over heels, before coming to rest in a crumpled heap at the bottom.

Webb’s SUV

15 minutes after take off

Harm pulled out his cell phone again, this time to update the Admiral. As the call went through, he could hear the interference static. Mentally he was grateful; it showed they were probably on the same track as Mac. He sure as hell hoped so.

“JAG Headquarters, PO Tiner speaking.” Barely making out that Tiner had answered, Harm attempted to reply.

“Tiner, this is Commander Rabb. Put me through to the Admiral, please.” Instead of the usual efficient transfer, all he could hear was Tiner repeating himself, followed by a loud burst of static, then silence.

Closing up the cell phone, he announced to Clay, “Well, I guess I won’t be updating the Admiral for a while.”

Clay shot him an amused look, then took a larger cell phone out of his pocket. “Mine’s bigger.” He tossed it over to Harm.

Rolling his eyes at Clay’s horrible attempt at humor, Harm caught the phone. With a smirk of his own, he answered him. “It’s not the size of the boat, Clay. It’s the motion of the ocean.”

Both men sniggered as Webb shot back. “Spoken like a man with a ‘small boat’.”

“The Navy has no small boats, Clay. We have huge powerful ships.”

The shared laugh made Harm feel better. Somehow, having Webb along was comforting. With all the messes that Clay had gotten them into, he had never let Harm down. Or Mac.

“I think they’re going into Mexico.” Clay cut the humor short as he checked the tracker signal on the GPS device. “Hurry up and make your call. I’ve got to make a few of my own.”

Back in the desert:

Mac groaned and tried to come to. Every part of her body ached ferociously. Gingerly she tested her limbs, moving each one carefully. Everything moved except for her right arm, which hurt even more viciously than the rest of her body. She couldn’t think what had happened. Shifting around, she levered herself into a sitting position. For a moment everything around her swam, but she managed to hang on.

Voices echoed above her getting her attention quickly. “Do you see her?”

“No, but I’m sure I got her. She went down right when I fired.”

“We’ll have to find her. We can’t take the chance.

Everything came back with a vengeance. She had to move, and move fast if she was going to survive. Looking up, she realized that she had fallen down into a steep arroyo, somehow landing underneath a rocky overhang. The sounds of climbing stirred her up, making her ignore her injuries.

Casting a look around, she scrambled along as best she could, keeping close to the base of the arroyo. With her arm hurting the way it was, there was no chance of climbing out. She wondered if she had broken it in the fall. Cradling her right arm in her left, she tried to focus on anything but the pain.

She had gone maybe half a mile when she allowed herself the luxury of resting for a moment. The sounds of pursuit had faded for the moment. Sitting down on a rock, she finally got around to examining her arm. It was bleeding from a bullet wound. Her sleeve was soaked with blood. She looked back along the way she had come and cursed. She had been leaving a trail.

Quickly and painfully she stripped off her pack and sweatshirt. There was nothing in the pack to help her stop bleeding, but she could use the sweatshirt to wrap the wound. Mumbling and cursing she managed to tie off the sweatshirt into a clumsy bandage. It wasn’t much, but at least it was something. She thanked God she thought to where one of those athletic bras that really covered everything, although she guessed modesty was the least of her worries at this point.

She began backtracking with the vague notion of hiding the blood trail, but soon realized that it just wouldn’t work. She was weak and dizzy and could barely see straight. The chances of her finding and covering the entire trail were negligible. In addition, she was going to run into her pursuers eventually. Damn it, she just couldn’t think straight.

Panting with exertion, she stopped and took another look around. That was when she saw the cave. It was about 10 feet up the wall of the arroyo, the entrance covered with scrub. It was difficult to see from where she stood; coming from the other direction it was almost impossible to see. The sun was already on the horizon; the shadows down here had already come. Thirty minutes from now it would be invisible.

Thankfully she began the climb; a difficult task one handed. The effort expended was huge, and it was with her last vestige of strength that she fell through the entrance, crashing onto the rocky floor with a bang that jolted her arm, sending shooting pains that overrode the pain from her other bumps, bruises, and scrapes. It wasn’t really a cave; it was more an indentation in the rocks.

It was the sound of voices that stifled her moans of pain. She had found the ‘cave’ not a minute too soon. She froze, afraid to make even the slightest sound. If they caught her, she was dead. She didn’t have the strength for even a nominal fight.

“Hold up Joe. It’s getting dark, we’ll never find her in the dark.”

“We can’t be far behind her, Lou. Look at the blood, a few more minutes and we’ll have her.” Joe seemed to have a bloodlust. Mac decided she didn’t like him at all. Lou seemed like a much more reasonable fellow.

“Yeah, but I don’t want to spend the night down here. It’ll be hell trying to get out. Besides, where can she go? There’s nothing but desert out there for miles. She has no water, no supplies, and she’s wounded. If she even survives the night it would be a miracle. It gets down to freezing here, remember?”

“But Lou, she kicked me in the balls, man. I owe her.”

Lou apparently found that amusing because he laughed. “Come on Joe. Let’s round up the others and head out. We’ll check for a body tomorrow.” The sound of them clambering back down the arroyo was a welcome one.

She breathed a sigh of relief before Lou’s words sunk in. No supplies, no water, wounded, freezing weather. One step at a time, she reminded herself. Steadfastly she refused to consider all the bad things facing her. She would handle one thing at a time.

Pulling herself up, she grimaced in pain. Damn it, flesh wounds DID hurt. John Wayne was a liar.

She dropped the pack, which she had been carrying on her good shoulder, on to her lap and began rummaging through it. The papers were all still there. By some miracle her cell phone was still intact, for all the good that did her here. She checked the signal, just for the hell of it. Nothing. The small flashlight was a lost cause, the bulb smashed in. She threw it aside and tried to think.

The only thing she could think of was to keep going. She was already chilled, and at least movement would keep her warm. There was the chance she could stumble across water. Granted, it was a slim chance, but it was better than nothing, and if she actually made it to the mountains, maybe she could pick up a signal on her cell phone.

The alternative was waiting here for those goons to find her. That prospect didn’t appeal to her, so she forced herself to her feet. Slinging the pack on her good shoulder again, she stepped out of the cave and slid down the slope to the arroyo floor. Gritting her teeth with determination, she headed back up the trail, keeping an eye out for an easy trail up.

Back in Webb’s SUV-

They had been following the truck for over 2 hours. They had stopped briefly at a gas station to pick up some bottled water and snacks, but were not about to take the time to eat a real meal. Harm was doing his best not to worry about Mac, but it was impossible.

He had updated the Admiral on Webb’s satellite phone and Webb had made his calls. Webb’s calls had proved rather interesting to listen to. First he had called his office to inform them of his whereabouts and activities, then he had dialed another number. From whoever answered he’d requested back up, to be ready to join them as soon as they reached their final destination, wherever that was. Apparently satisfied with his arrangements, Webb had terminated the call and settled back.

Getting through the border had not taken much time, and they were still able to track the truck with no problem. The drive was boring, and Harm did not find the desert very scenic. Not that he was in the mood to notice scenery. Mostly for the 2 hours he brooded about Mac.

“They’ve stopped.” Clay broke into his torturous reverie. He pulled over and parked the SUV, then pulled out the phone. He dialed a number and repeated the phrase, then paused, listening. “Yeah, we’ll be waiting. Hurry up.”

“What’s going on Clay? Let’s go…I want to see if they have Mac!” Harm couldn’t believe they were stopping.

Clay laid a calming hand on his arm, not used to being the ‘calm’ one. “Harm, we can’t just go barreling in there with no backup. You know that. I have men on the way.”

“I’m not sitting her for a couple of hours waiting for them! She could be in real danger! We could already be too late!” Harm was desperate. Mac was in trouble, he could feel it, and he had to get to her.

“They’ll be her in thirty minutes at the most. They’re in choppers. And that will give the office time to a recon through satellite photos now that we have the GPS coordinates. Think Harm. What would help Mac the most? Going in unprepared or knowing what we’re dealing with?”

Harm wanted to argue, but he knew Clay was right. He gave in with a sigh. “All right. But they better hurry. I’m going in soon, even if I go alone.” He gave Clay a determined glare, as if daring him to object.

Clay nodded in understanding. “You won’t go alone, Harm. No matter what. We have to do this right, but I’m not leaving her there long either. Believe me.”

Harm didn’t answer, and he looked away. But Clay knew he heard him, and that he appreciated it. They both settled back to wait for the choppers.

3/3

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