Disclaimer: The characters of JAG don't belong to me. I just borrowed them from Bellisarius Productions, Paramount and CBS for this story. No infringement intended.

The Mystery of Life

1655 ZULU
Saturday, December 15th
Arlington Shopping Center
Arlington, VA


Mac and Harriet strolled along the shops in the mall, both keeping a close eye on little AJ who skipped in front of Christina's stroller. They had separated from Bud and Harm about 20 minutes earlier, each going their own way to get Christmas presents for the other.

"DADDY!" AJ suddenly called loudly.

His face was pressed against the cold iron bars of the balustrade and he looked down at the ground floor beneath them.

Apparently, Bud hadn't heard his son, otherwise he sure would have noticed that Harriet and Mac now were watching him and Harm entering Victoria's Secrets.

"So who's getting lingery for Christmas? You or me?" Mac chuckled and picked AJ up.

"Bud would never go in such a store on his own. I guess you'll be the lucky one. Besides, once you two have children of your own, Harm sure won't think about getting you lingery for Christmas anymore. I think it then will be framed family pictures, or jewelry, but the need for lingery is long gone."

The two women giggled and continued their walk along the shops.

"Talking about family pictures, I picked up AJ's and Christina's photos yesterday and the clerk told me you already picked up the set you had made. How did they turn out?"

"Terrific, Harriet. Though I still don't know how you talked me into having them made. God, I know I will turn bright red when I show those pictures to Harm."

"Pitchers!" AJ exclaimed and raised his arms in the air. "Wanna see pitchers!"

"No, no, munchkin, those pictures are nothing for your eyes." Mac giggled amused. "They are for Uncle Harm for Christmas, so shhh, no telling."

AJ nodded, "Shhh, no telling, keep wiet."

"You know, Mac, if I had your body, I would have waited right in line behind you to have pictures of me taken like that. Sadly, I always had a couple of pounds too much on this body, and now after two kids, it's not getting any better. One day, you'll be glad you had those made. Any chance I can see them some time?"

"Yeah, why not? I keep them in my office so Harm won't find them. Remind me on Monday and I will show them to you."

Again, they both started to giggle. Mac put AJ on the ground who had started to get restless. The boy reached for Mac's hand immediately, and smiled up at her broadly.

"Harriet, I need to make a short stop at Walgreens before we meet Harm and Bud for lunch. Why don't you and the kids go over to Blockbusters and look for that new Disney movie you were talking about and I meet
you there in ten?"

"Walgreens is on the way to Blockbusters. I need to pick up a lotion for Christina's diaper rash anyway, so why not get it at Walgreens. Or is there anything you need to pick up that you don't want me to know of?"

Harriet grinned and nudged Mac in her side.

"Oh what the heck, I might as well tell you. Ever since I stopped taking the pill, I ran late. And now I am overdue for four weeks. I don't think I can consider that as running late anymore."

"So you thought you could pick up a pregnancy test without me finding out."

"No, it's not that. I just feel a little awkward."

Harriet started to giggle, "There is nothing you have to feel awkward about."

"I know, but I still do."

"Any chance you might be pregnant at all? Sore breasts, dizziness, morning sickness?"

"No, but that does not necessarily have to mean I am not. I made an appointment with my Ob/gyn for Monday, but I don't think I can wait till then. It's driving me nuts not to know for sure."

"Have you told Harm about your suspicions?"

"No, and I won't until I find out if I am pregnant or not. He's wants a child of his own so badly. I can see that every time he is around AJ and Christina. I just don't want to give him hope and then have to tell him I am not pregnant."

Harriet suddenly stopped Christina's stroller.

"Walgreens, here we are. Maybe I can help you pick the right one? You know, they have tons of different ones."

"If you tell Harm anything about this trip to Walgreens, I am going to get back at you, Harriet, understood?"

"Yes, ma'am." Harriet chuckled and followed Mac inside.







0132 ZULU
Saturday, December 15th
Harm's apartment
North of Union Station
Washington DC


"Mac, what is taking you so long in there?" Harm called out loud.

10 minutes ago, Mac had retreated to the bathroom and since hadn't left it.

"Give me a minute, okay?" Mac called back.

Getting really impatient and curious what Mac was doing in there, he stood and made a beeline to the bathroom.

"Mac?"

"It's blue!" she exclaimed in shock and held up the pregnancy test.

"Blue?" Harm stuttered and stared at the pregnancy test in Mac's hands. "Does this mean we are or we are not?"

"According to the instructions it means we are."

"Pregnant! We're going to have a baby!"

Harm laughed out loud and gathered Mac into his arms.

"I don't believe it, we're going to have a baby, Mac!"

"It seems that way."

"You don't sound very thrilled about this. Aren't you happy?"

"Yes, I guess I am. I was just caught a little off guard. It's a baby, Harm!"

"Our baby, Mac. God, we are going to be parents! Can you see that? A little boy with my looks and your brains."

"Or a girl with my looks and your brains. But now that I think about it, I'd rather have a kid with my brains, squid."

"Was this some kind of an insult?"

"No, I just think one person in this world with such a twisted mind as yours is enough." Mac laughed.

"Oh, you!"

Harm started to tickle her, and Mac squirmed in his arms. She reached for his hands and stopped him.

"So you are happy, I guess?"

"Happy? I am thrilled, ecstatic, Mac. From the day AJ was born, I waited for you to say these three little words to me, that you are pregnant with my child. This baby is a creation of our love."

"Or better, the result of a very hot night of making love."

"Still, we made this baby out of our love. Oh, I love you so much, Sarah Mackenzie."

"Likewise, Flyboy."

Mac just laughed before she pulled Harm into a kiss.





1305 ZULU
Monday, December 17th
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA


Mac made a beeline from the elevator to her office, trying to avoid Harriet. She knew exactly the first thing she was going to ask was about the result of the pregnancy test. Mac grimaced slightly when she spotted Harriet at the fax machine.

"Good morning, ma'am!" Harriet smiled at her broadly when she saw her.

"Morning, Harriet."

Mac entered her office and placed her briefcase on the desk. She had just sat down when Harriet entered.

"And, what did the test say?" she asked and closed the door to Mac's office behind her.

"Positive."

" Congratulations, ma'am! How did the Commander take it?"

"He went from shock to being ecstatic in less than a second."

"And you, ma'am?"

"As someone once said, I am currently on an emotional roller coaster ride. Up and down - and up - and down again."

"This is all just normal. After all, this is your first, it's natural to be scared and be happy at the same time. I took me more than a week to finally adjust to the feeling of being a mom in several months."

"Thanks, Harriet."

"Have you two talked about what are you going to tell the Admiral now? You still haven't told him about your relationship."

"Harm and I decided to tell him this afternoon. I am just a little concerned about his reaction and what he will do about this."

"Don't worry, the Admiral will understand. He found a way to keep me here, and he probably will also a find a way to keep the both of you here. After all, protocol says no married partners, and you are not married yet... or are you?"

"No, Harriet, we are not. Let's just face this head on." Mac opened her briefcase and pulled a couple of files out. "Will you please send Bud in here when you see him?"

"Sure, ma'am. And if there is anything I can do for you, let me know."

"I will. You are dismissed, Lt. Sims."






1910 ZULU
Monday, December 17th
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA


Harm spotted Mac leaving the elevator and immediately rushed to her side.

"And?" he asked impatiently.

"And what?"

"What did the doctor say?"

"Not here."

Harm followed her into her office and closed the doors and the blinds.

"Now tell me, what did the doctor say?"

"He said I am probably 11 weeks along already and doing fine. He calculated my due date around July 6th."

"11 weeks already? That's end of first trimester."

"I know. I didn't think I was that far either. First, he told me I was probably 6 weeks along, calculated from the last time I had my menstruation. When he made a sonogram, he said it looked more like I was already 10 to 12 weeks along, so he settled for 11 weeks. We'll know for sure how far along I am in about two or three weeks."

"That is all?"

"What else do you want to know?"

"I don't know. You were gone for over two hours, there has to be more."

Mac smiled, "Harm, I am pregnant, that is all that is important. I am doing great, and so is the baby."

They were interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Enter." Mac called, and Petty Officer Tiner stepped into the office.

"Sir, ma'am, the Admiral wants to speak to you in his office."

"We will be there in a minute, Tiner."

Tiner nodded and closed the door behind him when he left.

"Are we going to tell Chegwidden?"

"Better, what are we going to tell him, Mac."

"Yeah, that's true. Why don't you just let me talk to him in private?"

"Why? We are both in this together."

"Just let me handle this for once, okay? He still doesn't know that we are in a relationship, so I'll try to break the news to him as calmly as I can. I will have Tiner call you when it comes to the part of who the father is. I just feel it is easier for me to tell him that I am pregnant alone and discuss certain things about my work before he knows who the father is. Do you understand that?"

Harm nodded, "I do."

2 minutes later, they sat in their CO's office.

"Colonel, Commander, I have a possible fraternization case on my hand that needs your attention. Some unidentified source claims that a Lt. j.g. Miranda Tompkins is having an affair with her superior officer,
Cmdr. Peter Miller. This source also claims that Lt. Tompkins had an abortion to keep her affair with Cmdr. Miller under wraps."

Mac swallowed hard when she heard the word abortion.

"I want you two to fly to Miramar where they both are currently stationed and investigate this. Christmas is a week from now, so I expect your report by Thursday. Dismissed."

The Admiral handed a file to Harm, who got up and left the office while Mac remained in her chair.

"Sir, can I have a word with you in private please?"

"What can I do for you, Colonel?"

"Sir, I know this is probably not the best time to tell you, but..." Mac drew in a short breath of air before she blurted out, "I am pregnant, sir."

"Come again, please?" AJ gasped in surprise.

"I am expecting a baby in July, sir."

"Hold on for a moment, Colonel."

AJ raised from his chair and made a beeline for the door that lead right into the bullpen. He swung it open with such power that it bounced off the wall.

"COMMANDER RABB!" he practically screamed through the bullpen. "BACK INTO MY OFFICE!"

Mac cringed when she heard that. She turned towards the door and saw Harm making his way back into the Admiral's office.

"Admiral?" he asked and shrugged his shoulders as he sat down in the empty chair.

"For 7 months, I sat by and waited for you two to come into my office and finally come clean with your feelings for each other."

"You knew?" Mac asked astonished.

"Yes, I knew. The whole damn bullpen knew. If I had gotten a buck for each time I saw you two kissing in this building and keeping my eyes shut about it, I would be a millionaire by now."

"We are sorry, sir, we didn't know..." Harm stammered.

"Sorry doesn't quite cut it, Commander. As your friend, I am a little disappointed that you didn't confide in me earlier. As your CO, I can understand why you didn't."

"And who knew about our relationship, sir? Our friend or our CO?"

"Who do you think, Rabb? Now, Colonel, Commander, I guess you two have to say something to your CO?"

Mac nodded, "Yessir, we do. We are both very much in love, and we are expectant parents."

"Good, I took note of that. You are dismissed, Colonel, Commander. You have a case to investigate."

Both Harm and Mac raised from their chairs and snapped to attention.

"Aye aye, sir!" the said at the same time before they turned and left the office.

1950 ZULU
Monday, December 17th
Harm's apartment
North of Union Station
Washington DC


"Who did you call?" Mac called from the bedroom area and zipped up the bag on the bed in front of her.

"My mother." Harm uttered as he approached her. "I told her I'd stop by these days while we are at Miramar."

"And what did you tell her about us?"

"Nothing - yet. This is nothing I am going to tell her over the phone. Every time I visit her, she asks me why I did not bring my partner so she could finally meet you. This time, I am just going to surprise her because I am not only bringing my partner, but also the woman I love and the mother of my child."

"I'd really like to meet your mother. Do you think she will like me?"

"She will love you, I know that for sure. Just from the way I talked about you, she already considered you her perfect daughter-in-law." Harm chuckled, got his spare uniform out of the closet and started packing it into his bag lying right next to Mac's.

"What did you tell your mother about me that made her think that way, hum?" Mac asked, smiling, and placed a tender kiss on his lips.

"She said it was not what I said about you, it was the way I said it. She called that a mother's intuition."

"And when did she say that?"

"Three years ago."

Mac started to laugh, "Three years ago? And ever since then she's been trailing you to introduce me to her? Bad boy, you really should have."

"I am doing now." Harm pulled Mac towards him and wrapped his arms around her waist. "How about we put Bud back on a plane to DC when we are finished and spend another couple of days in La Jolla with my mother and Frank so they get to know you and you will get to know them."

"I would love to."

"Oh, my mom will be thrilled to find out she is going to be a grandmother. At least now she can't tell me anymore that she certainly will look like one before I actually make her one."

Mac just chuckled, "I know your mother was very disappointed when you told her you wouldn't spend Christmas with her - again. Why don't we just extend those couple of days you were talking about earlier and
stay for Christmas?"

"What, and give up the chance to spend Christmas all alone, in bed, celebrating in our own way?" Harm gave her a naughty grin.

"I never had a real family Christmas, Harm. Wherever I spent Christmas, I always felt like I was an intruder. It was nice of Bud and Harriet to invite us over last year, and the year before, but didn't you just feel like it was not the place you were supposed to be? This year, I want to spend Christmas with my new family, and that includes your mother and Frank."

"Aw, you don't know how my mother can be around Christmas time... but okay, if you want to spend Christmas in La Jolla, we will. Besides, once we show up on her doorstep, she sure won't let us go till after
Christmas."

"So it's a deal?"

"It's a deal."

"Sealed with a kiss."

Mac wrapped her arms around Harm's neck and pulled his face close to hers, placing her lips on his to join in a tender kiss.







2040 ZULU
Monday, December 17th
Dulles International Airport
Washington DC


"Commander, Colonel." Lt. Shepard uttered and nodded her head as she approached Mac and Harm who were waiting at gate 20 to board their flight to Atlanta where they had to change planes.

Lt. j.g. Susan Shepard had been assigned to JAG a little less than two months ago. From the day she arrived, she was known as Lt. Singer's twin in the bullpen. Not when it came to their appearances, but their
opinions and aims were one and the same.

Lt. Singer had offered to help her through law school and teach her, like Harm and Mac had done with Bud. Oddly enough, the Admiral had agreed to Lt. Singer's request.

"Where is Lt. Roberts?" Harm asked irritated about her presence.

" Admiral Chegwidden sent me along. A drunk and disorderly came in that needed Lt. Roberts attention. Do you have a problem with that, Commander?"

"No, no, I was just surprised."

Harm shortly turned to Mac who shrugged her shoulders. If there was anything worse than having Bud coming along, it was Lt. Susan Shepard. It would have been easy to nicely tell Bud to get lost if they wanted to be alone for a moment, but with Lt. Shepard, it was another story.

"Would you care to inform me what we will be doing at Miramar?"

"Why don't we just board the plane and the Commander and I will tell you all you need to know." Mac said, trying to sound as polite as she could.

They showed off their boarding tickets and walked down the corridor towards the entrance of the plane.

"I heard it was a case of fraternization. Why did the Admiral send you two?" Lt. Shepard inquired, a strange smile on her face.

"What exactly do you mean by that, Lieutenant? Is it so unusual for us to investigate fraternization cases?" Mac responded through gritted teeth, knowing very well where Lt. Shepard was going with this.

From the moment she had arrived, she had made goo goo eyes at Harm - and even hearing all the gossip in the bullpen about him being together with Mac didn't stop her.

"Oh, nothing important, Colonel. I was just curious." she whistled.

Both Harm and Mac shot a look her way before they entered the plane and walked down to the aisle to look for their seats. They had three in the same row, next to each other. Mac slipped in the row to take the seat at the window while Harm stored both his and her briefcase in the overhead compartment.

He closed it and was ready to take the seat next to Mac. He cringed when he saw that Lt. Shepard had already taken that spot. Groaning audibly, he took the seat at the aisle. His glance wandered over to Mac, who shortly nodded at him.

"Lt. Shepard," she started, "would you care to change seats with the Commander? There are several things we have to discuss about this case during the flight."

"I don't do very good at flights sitting at the aisle." Lt. Shepard answered bluntly.

"How about the window seat? Would that be any better?" Harm asked annoyed. "I will make this an order if I have to, Lieutenant."

Groaning, Lt. Shepard changed seats with Mac.

"If I am going to kill her, will you defend me, Mac?" Harm whispered into her ear, bringing a smile to her lips.

"She's worse than Bud, isn't she?" she whispered back, making sure Lt. Shepard wouldn't hear them.

"I never thought there could be anyone worse than Bud until Singer arrived. Back then I thought nobody could be worse than her, but Shepard definitely is."

"So much for the Admiral's punishment for not telling him."

Both Harm and Mac broke out in laughter after that.





0710 ZULU
Monday, December 17th
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA


Harm, Mac, and Lt. Shepard had been assigned temporary lodging in one of the officer family houses that was currently vacant. It was small, but seemed to be a lot more comfortable than a motel room or base housing as in a small room for each of them at enlisted quarters.

Susan had disappeared upstairs, inspecting the bedrooms. Mac had made a beeline for the bathroom immediately as she wasn't feeling very well. In Lt. Shepard's presence, she blamed the bad airline food for
her upset stomach, Harm all the while knowing the real reason.

Susan had a sheepish grin on her face when she descended the stairs and met Harm in the living room.

"Is that a pull out couch?" she asked and indicated the couch Harm was sitting on.

"No, why?" he replied, fumbling at the bottom of the couch to see if he could pull it out.

"Then I guess we have a problem. There is one bedroom downstairs, and two upstairs. The one downstairs has a queen size bed, as has one of the bedrooms upstairs. The other bedroom carries a crib and kid's bunk beds. Well, with all due respect, Commander, but I don't intend to share a room with the Colonel, not even mention a bed, so someone has to sleep on the couch."

Harm cringed slightly. It wouldn't have been a problem with Bud to give him one of the rooms, and Harm and Mac would share the other, but Lt. Susan Shepard was some sort of a politically correct officer, and she was having a major crush on Harm, so who knew what she would do once she found out they were sharing a room, not to say a bed?

"I am too tall for the couch, Lieutenant."

Harm demonstrated for her that he indeed was too tall for the small couch. He lay back, and his feet were dangling off the end of the couch.

"Well, I will take the bedroom upstairs. It is up to you two to decide who is sleeping on the couch and who is getting the bed."

She picked up her bag from the ground and headed back upstairs, pushing past Mac who returned from the downstairs bathroom.

"Where is she going?" Mac asked and sat down on the couch next to Harm.

"She's taking the bedroom upstairs. Now we only have one bedroom left downstairs with a queen size bed. You take the bed and I will take the couch." Harm offered and got up. "And when Lt. Troublemaker is asleep,
I will come sneak under the sheets with you."

Mac smiled, "Look, I am absolutely tired, it's been a long day. I know we should discuss our schedule for tomorrow, but I don't know if I can stay awake for even another 10 minutes."

"Are you sure you are all right?" Harm asked concerned.

"I am fine, Harm, I am just tired. You know I don't like being stuck in a small airplane seat for hours, unless it's Sarah I am flying in."

The last comment brought a smile to Harm's lips, "Why don't you go change and let me know when you are ready so I can tuck you in safely."

Mac picked her bag up and vanished in the downstairs bedroom down the hallway. Remembering that he was still dressed in his uniform, Harm decided to change as well. He grabbed his bag and headed towards the bedroom Mac had disappeared.

Hearing Susan descending the chairs, he quickly decided against changing out of his uniform in Mac's room, and turned towards the door on the opposite site of the hallway, the bathroom. He closed the door
and securely looked it behind him, not really sure whether Susan would sneak in if he didn't.

A couple of minutes later he had changed into blue shorts and a Navy sweater and emerged the bathroom. He spotted Susan sitting on the couch, dressed in a pair of shorts and a sweater as well. She waved for him to come over.

"Where is the Colonel?" she asked.

"She was tired so I told her to get some sleep. We'll be discussing our schedule for tomorrow during breakfast. Why don't you go and get some sleep as well, Lieutenant? It's rather late and we'll have a busy day tomorrow."

"Okay. See you in the morning, Commander."

Susan got up from the couch and walked upstairs to her bedroom. Harm looked up the staircase after her, and when he heard the door closing, he turned back towards Mac's bedroom.

Silently, he opened the door and found Mac dressed in a pair of gray sweatpants and a white shirt sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Now where are those fancy nightgowns I am used to see?" he teased and closed the door behind him.

"I thought this was more appropriate for an investigation. Besides, I don't want to give you any ideas, sailor. This is work, not pleasure. The fancy nightgowns are for pleasure only."

"I sent Shepard upstairs to get some sleep and told her we will discuss our schedule tomorrow during breakfast. Now you will lay down and get some sleep. This is an order, Colonel."

"Yessir."

Harm tucked her in safely and sat down on the edge of the bed to place a quick kiss on her forehead.

"Now go and make your bed on the couch, Commander."

"C'mon, Mac. Shepard is upstairs, she won't notice."

"Then at least make the couch look like you slept on it. We don't want her to report us to the Admiral for whatever reason, do we? He probably sent her along as our watchdog, so we will behave, squid."

"Yes, ma'am."

Mac reached over and wrapped her arms around Harm's neck to pull him into a kiss before she released him and playfully swatted him on his upper arm to finally go.






1405 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA


A knock on the door to Mac's bedroom woke her that morning. She smiled when she felt that Harm's arms were still wrapped around her, holding her tight.

"Colonel?"

The knocking on the door became more insistent, and woke Harm. He smiled at Mac and was about to say something, when Mac's hand covered his mouth.

"Shepard is at the door." she whispered. "Hide next to the bed, she won't see you when I answer it."

Harm nodded and placed a quick kiss on Mac's lips before he rolled over and took his place on the floor next to he bed. He had a clear view though of what was going on - just he couldn't see any higher than Mac's
ankles.

He saw her walking towards the door and open it to reveal another pair of feet that obviously belonged to Lt. Susan Shepard.

"Good morning, Colonel, I hope I didn't wake you?" she asked, sheepishly grinning from ear to ear.

"Actually, you did, Lieutenant. What can I do for you?"

"I just came down to get me something to drink when I saw that the Commander is missing."

"He is?" Mac replied and raised her eyebrows.

"You don't happen to know where I can find him?"

Susan tried to get a quick view into the bedroom, but all she could see was the unmade bed and Mac's bag in front of it.

"Maybe the Commander went out for his morning jog like he usually does? I haven't seen him since last night."

"Thank you, Colonel."

Mac closed the door and groaned. This was going to be one tough assignment with Lt. Susan Shepard as their legal aid.

"Hum, my morning jog?" Harm mused and got up from the floor. "I do have to look at least a little sweaty when I come back."

"Then why don't you just climb out of the window, run for a mile and come back?" Mac teased him.

"C'mon, in shorts and barefoot?"

Mac just laughed and plopped down on the bed. She placed her head on her elbow and looked over at Harm.

"Why don't I just see if the coast is clear and you will make a beeline to the bathroom on the other side of the hallway and take a shower. You can always tell her you've been out for a run nevertheless, she won't find out."

"We got pretty good at this sneaking around thing, didn't we?" Harm chuckled. "I really hope this is the last time we have to do this."

"Why, don't you just enjoy it, Commander?"

"I do, Colonel, but I would enjoy it a lot more if I could tell the whole world that I am in love with the most gorgeous woman and that she is having my baby."

"C'mon, get out of here. We have a day full of work ahead of us. We better get started."

"Yes, ma'am!"






1610 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
Cmdr. Peter Miller's house
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA


Harm knocked at the front door which was immediately answered by a little girl pulling it open.

"Hi!" she giggled.

"Hi, young lady. Is your daddy home?" Harm asked, giving her a warm smile.

The girl turned away from the door, screaming, "DAAAADDY!"

Cmdr. Peter Miller appeared at the doorway a moment later, hushing his daughter back inside.

"Yes, what can I do for you?" he asked.

"I am Cmdr. Harmon Rabb JR, this is Lt. Col. Sarah Mackenzie and Lt. Susan Shepard. We are from JAG."

"JAG?" Cmdr. Miller asked surprised.

"We are here to investigate a possible fraternization case, sir." Mac uttered.

"Oh, I see. This is a rather bad time at the moment. I have to take my kids to school in a couple of minutes. Is there any place and time I can meet you after I have dropped them off?"

"If you don't mind, Lt. Shepard can take your children to school, sir. We have a rather tight schedule for our investigations with Christmas being so near."

"I understand, Commander. Roberta, Kieran, Marvin, are you ready to go?"

A moment later, 3 kids appeared at the doorway. The little girl, Roberta, who had opened the door for them, was about 5, and twin boys, about the age of 7 or 8.

"Who are they?" one of the boys asked.

Cmdr. Miller didn't respond to his son's question, "This nice Lieutenant here will take you to school, guys."

"Will you pick us up later, or will you be gone when we come home?" the girl asked insecurely.

"I will pick you up later, baby girl. Now go or you will be late. Boys, show the Lieutenant your way to school and behave, all right?"

The kids all nodded and toddled out of the house. Susan held her hand open for Harm to hand her the car keys, and the look she gave him could have killed.

5 minutes later, Harm, Mac and Cmdr. Miller were seated in the living room.

"I knew this would happen sooner or later." Cmdr. Miller started. "Before you ask me any question, can I explain my current situation to you?"

Harm and Mac nodded silently.

"I can't control who I fall in love with, I think nobody can. I know it was not right to pursue an affair with one of my officers. Lt. Tompkins asked for a transfer to North Island NAS so I would not be her commanding officer anymore, but it was denied. We were both trying so hard to keep distance, but at one point we couldn't. We had fallen in love, and no rules could prevent that."

"What about your wife, Commander?"

"Well, this is were it gets complicated. You saw my kids. Kieran and Marvin are from my previous marriage, Roberta is adopted. My first wife died in a car accident when the boys were two and a half. A truck hit
the car head on. My brother and sister-in-law were in the car as well as their newborn daughter, Roberta. They were taking her home from the hospital. Roberta was the only one who survived. At the hospital, I met
my second wife, Jillian. She works as surgeon at San Diego Mercy Hospital. She helped me overcome my grief. I thought my boys needed a mother, as well as Roberta who I had taken in my care. It never was love what held us together, it were my kids. She was so good to them, like they were her own, and they loved her like a mother. We adopted Roberta when she was 8 months old. To this point, Roberta does not know I am not her father and Jillian is not her mother. 6 months ago, I told Jillian that I had met someone I really loved with all my heart and wanted a divorce. She freaked. She said if I was going to drop her, she would take the kids away from me and tell Roberta I was not her real father. I love those kids, and I just couldn't let that happen."

"So you stayed."

"Yes, I did. I told Miranda I couldn't see her anymore, for the children's sake. It only worked for a couple of weeks. Then she requested her transfer. We thought it would be best for us if we wanted to keep what we had and still see each other without getting into trouble. I don't know why her request of transfer was denied. Not that you get a wrong point of view of our relationship. We never crossed the line, we never slept together. We knew the rules, we couldn't let it go that far."

"Do you know who could have filed these accusations of fraternization?" Mac asked.

"Probably my wife. She can't accept it's over. I consulted a lawyer about a possible divorce and about custody for the children a little over 2 months ago. Legally, Jillian is Roberta's mother, I know she will take her away from me if I file a divorce. It would ruin me, and Roberta."

"Cmdr. Miller, we know this is a very hard time for you. As long as we are investigating this, it would be the best if you and Lt. Tompkins won't see each other unless it is work related."

"I know, Commander. We are already trying to keep our relationship on a base work related."

"We will talk to Lt. Tompkins as well and will let you know about the outcome of our investigation."

Mac and Harm rose from their seats.

"We will both be charged for fraternization for what we did, is that right?"

"Not if we can prevent it, Commander."






2025 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA



Mac sat on the couch in the living room of their temporary quarters and worked on her laptop. Harm and her had sent Susan off to get them lunch.

"Did you find that request of transfer, Mac?" Harm asked and sat down on the couch next to her.

"Yes, I did. She requested a transfer to North Island NAS 4 months ago. It was denied without further explanation."

"So they were really trying to avoid fraternization. What do you think about this?"

"From what I gathered from Miller, he really loves her. I need to hear Lt. Tompkins point of view as well though, but I don't think it would be right to charge those two with fraternization. They fell in love, but decided to go by the rules and one of them requested the transfer which sadly was denied."

"What about the abortion, Mac? If she really had one, we can't go by they never had sexual intercourse. Falling in love with each other is not against the rules, sexual intercourse is."

"Miller said they never slept together. I don't think he was lying when he said that."

"Neither do I. Look, Shepard should be back with lunch in a while, and I hope Lt. Tompkins got the message we left her so we can ask her all these questions later. Why don't you and I go on the phone now and call my mother to ask her about dinner tonight."

"Yeah, why not?"

Harm reached for the cordless phone on the table next to the couch and dialed his mother's number. A moment later, his face lit up when he heard her voice.

"Mom, hi, it's me."

- "Harmon, darling, I was already anxiously awaiting your call." -

"I am sorry I didn't call earlier, but we got in pretty late last night and had a busy schedule this morning."

- "You work too much, darling. Listen, Frank and I thought that maybe Mac and you would like to come over for dinner tonight?" -

"That is the reason why I am calling. Mac would really like to meet you, so we thought about dinner tonight as well. Give us a time, and we will be there."

- "How does 8 o'clock sound?" -

"Sounds fine, mom."

- "Oh, now I am really excited. After all these years, you finally introduce me to this woman you talk so highly about. I also hope there is something else you two have to tell me." -

"Mom!" Harm chuckled. "Will you please stop that?"

- "Never, Harm, darling. I am your mother, I have hopes." -

Harm looked up from the phone to see Susan shuffling through the door with a large box of pizza and two bottles of coke which she placed on the table next to Mac's laptop. Mac picked the valuable piece of electronic up and went to store it in its bag and get some plates and glasses out of the kitchen.

"Look, mom, I need to go. See you tonight. Bye."

Harm hung the phone up and placed it back on the table next to the couch.

"Your mother lives near here?" Susan asked surprised.

"In La Jolla. She invited us over for dinner tonight."

"Oh, great." Susan smiled.

"I am sorry, but that 'us' did not include you, Lieutenant. Only my partner and me."

"My, are we friendly today, Cmdr. Rabb."

They were interrupted by a knock at the front door. Harm got up from the couch and went to open it.

"Are you Cmdr. Rabb?" a young woman dressed in a Navy uniform asked.

"Yes, and you might be?"

The woman snapped to attention, "Lt. Miranda Tompkins, sir. Cmdr. Miller told me where I could find you."

"At ease, Lieutenant. Come on in."

Harm showed her to the living room where Mac and Susan were already hovering over the pizza.

"Lieutenant, these are Lt. Col. Sarah Mackenzie and Lt. Susan Shepard. And this is Lt. Miranda Tompkins."

Lt. Tompkins shortly nodded in their direction.

"I hope I am not interrupting. I can come back later, sir."

"No, it's all right. Lieutenant, would you get the Lieutenant something to drink?"

"Oh no, that's not necessary. I just stopped by because you left me a message that you needed to talk to me."

"Why don't you sit down first, Lt. Tompkins."

Mac offered her a seat on the couch next to her.

"Cmdr. Miller told me you stopped by his house this morning and asked him several questions about our relationship. If there is anyone who has to be charged for fraternization, it has to be me, not him. He did nothing wrong, sir, ma'am, he has three little kids to take care of. If this is going public, it will ruin him."

"No charges have been filed yet, Lieutenant. We are here to decide whether they will or not."

"I understand that, Cmdr. Rabb. I know you want to discuss my relationship to Cmdr. Miller with me. This is a very private part of my life, sir, and I don't know if..."

Mac stopped her right there in her sentence as she raised her hand.

"If you feel uncomfortable talking in front the Commander about this issue, we can talk about this in private, Lieutenant."

"Thank you, Colonel, I appreciate this."

Mac smiled at her warmly before they both headed for the kitchen to talk in private, from woman to woman.

"The Commander is a very understanding man, he will understand if you don't want to talk to him about this."

"Thank you, ma'am. I just feel it is easier for a woman to understand than for a man."

Mac nodded, "Please tell me about your relationship to Cmdr. Miller."

"We are in love, ma'am. We both knew from the moment we admitted our love for each other that it was wrong to pursue a relationship in any way. He is my commanding officer and he is married, and I respect that. When he said we didn't sleep together, he was telling the truth, we never did. I requested a transfer away from Miramar so we finally could have the relationship we both wanted, and he talked to his wife about a divorce. My transfer request was denied, his wife freaked at the thought of a divorce. I don't know who accused us of fraternization."

"We don't know that either, Lieutenant, but we will find it out. There is another accusation that was brought up. The person who accuses you of fraternization also accuses you of abortion."

"I did not have an abortion!" Lt. Tompkins screeched. "I wasn't even pregnant. How could I, I haven't slept with any man for a long time. I would be ecstatic if I was blessed with a child. Colonel, there is one thing I didn't tell Peter, and I don't want anyone to find out about it. Whoever told you I had an abortion probably misinterpreted my treatment at San Diego Mercy Hospital."

"If you don't want to talk about this, you don't have to. If you say you didn't have an abortion, I will take your word on that."

"No, ma'am, you have to understand. I am treated for uterus cancer at Mercy. I had a hysterectomy six weeks ago. I know Peter's wife saw me while I was in hospital after surgery. An abortion would just fit into her distorted mind. Call my Ob/gyn and request my medical chart if you have to. He will also tell you that even if I wanted to pursue a sexual relationship with someone, I wouldn't have been allowed to."

"I am sorry, Lieutenant."

"I hope you now can understand that what Peter and I have is not sexual. I have never loved anyone the way I love him. If my request of transfer had been approved, you wouldn't be here investigating a case of fraternization."

"Lieutenant, considering all aspects, I don't see a case of fraternization. We will report back to our CO tonight, and probably will be able to tell you by tomorrow that no charges will be filed."

"Thank you, ma'am. I didn't think a lawyer can be so understanding."

"I am not only a lawyer, Lt. Tompkins, I am also a woman. I know how it feels to fall in love with someone you work with. You can't tell your heart to stop loving this man just because regs tell you to."

"No, ma'am, you can't."




2215 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA /
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA


"So you recommend that no charges will be filed, Colonel?" AJ asked and leaned back in his chair after he had put Mac on the speaker.

"No, sir. Maintaining a close friendship with your commanding officer is no offence, is it?"

"No, Colonel, I don't think so. Have you enough proof to back this up?"

"Yes, we do." Harm piped in. "We have statements from both Lt. Tompkins and Cmdr. Miller. Cmdr. Miller filed for a divorce from his wife, and the Colonel I think she is now trying to get back at him."

"Lt. Tompkins filed a request of transfer a couple of months back which was denied. They both were trying to avoid accusations of fraternization. Lt. Tompkins is still willing to transfer out of Miramar if charges will
not be filed."

"What about those accusations of an abortion?"

"Sir, Lt. Tompkins confided in me for what medical reasons she was treated at Mercy hospital. However, I don't think these are relevant in any way. It was not an abortion though, sir. Lt. Tompkins was never pregnant. I called Mercy earlier and they confirmed her story."

"All right. Colonel, Commander, I expect you and Lt. Shepard back in DC by Thursday morning for a detailed report."

"Sir, the Colonel and I thought about requesting some vacation days. I want to introduce Mac to my mother and my stepfather, and we want to tell them about the baby."

"As far as I remember you knew where you were headed when you left my office yesterday morning. Why didn't you request those days then, Commander?"

"I thought I'd better wait until you have cooled down a bit, sir."

AJ smiled, "All right, Commander. Send Lt. Shepard back so she can resume her work on Thursday morning. I expect you two for a full report in my office Monday morning first thing. Is that enough time for you and the Colonel to arrange personal matters?"

"Yessir. Thank you, sir."







0355 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
Burnett Residence
La Jolla, CA


Harm pulled the rental car into the driveway of his mother's home and turned off the engine.

"I tell you, we have not really left this car, and my mom will already come running out of the house."

"Oh, we will see."

Mac swung the door to the passenger seat open and swung her legs over the edge. She stood, and leaned on the roof to look over at Harm and was just about to tell him that she was right, when she heard a shrill
voice behind her.

"Harmon, darling!" Trish Burnett exclaimed as she came rushing towards their car.

"Told you so." Harm mouthed to Mac and pushed his door close.

Mac laughed and pushed her door closed as well. When she turned around to greet Harm's mother, she stopped dead in his tracks.

"Mom, are you okay?" Harm inquired and rushed to her side.

"Oh, yes, yes, darling. I am sorry, Colonel. I thought your resemblance to an old friend of Harm's was only on the pictures he sent me. I never thought..."

"No offense taken, ma'am." Mac quickly interrupted her, not wanting to go on with that discussion.

"Please, don't call me ma'am, this is not the military. I am Trish for you, Sarah. Is it all right I call you Sarah?"

"Yes, it's all right."

"Now, Harm, why don't you show Sarah around the house while I take a quick look at our dinner. Frank is not home yet, he got held up in the office. I expect him home any minute though."

"I will, mom."

The three entered the house, and Mac was immediately impressed by the way the house was decorated. What caught her eye first were family pictures on the mantelpiece in the living room.

"Oh no, don't look at these, please!" Harm pleaded desperately, but he was too late. Mac had already picked up a picture of a two year old Harmon Rabb JR sitting in the bathtub.

"Damn, how often have I told her to put that picture away when she gets company. It's so embarrassing!"

"Why, you were a cute little boy, Sailor."

"Yeah, cute and buck naked on that picture!"

"Oh, I see you found my favorite picture of Harm." Trish called joyfully and placed a tray with refreshments on the table. "Did you see the picture on the right? It's his picture from graduation day at Annapolis."

Mac put the picture she was holding in her hands back on the mantelpiece and picked up Harm's graduation photo.

"Nice haircut."

"Hey, it was the 80s, Mac."

Mac placed the picture back on the mantelpiece when the picture of five year old Harmon Rabb JR sitting in a Tomcat and his father standing nearby caught her eye. Her fingertips lightly touched the picture.

"That is Harm and his father. He took him to the USS Hornet on a visitor's day. Even at five years old, Harm already knew that one day he would be flying a Tomcat."

"Harm told me about that trip. We listened to the tapes together."

Suddenly, they all heard the front door open and close, and Frank entered the living room.

"Harm, what a pleasure to have you here." he smiled and hugged Harm.

"Hi Frank."

"And you must be Sarah." Frank extended his hand in Mac's direction. "God, Harm, you didn't tell us..."

"Don't go there." Trish cut in.

"What? That he didn't tell us how beautiful she really is?"

Mac blushed, "Thank you, sir."

"Not sir. I am Frank."

"Harm, why don't you and Sarah go ahead outside on the patio. It's a beautiful night, so I thought we could have dinner outside. The table is all set, so if you could please turn on the heater once you get outside? Frank, would you help me with dinner please?"

Harm just smiled at his mother before he turned to Mac. He placed his hand on the small of her back and guided her outside on the patio.

"What do you think, Frank, are they going to tell us they are in love or do I have to ask?" Trish asked.

"Don't push them, Trish." Frank responded and followed his wife to the kitchen. "They will tell you when they are ready."






0505 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
Burnett Residence
La Jolla, CA


Laughter sounded from the living room. They had moved their dessert to the living room after it had started to cool down outside. Trish returned with a new bowl of lemonade and only caught the last half of what Mac
was saying.

"A rocking horse?" she asked surprised.

"Christina's rocking horse, mom. We got her one for Christmas. You know, one of those old wooden ones that looks like a horse and not those new colorful plastic ones that look like everything but a horse."

"Oh, I understand." Trish placed the bowl down on the table and took her seat in one of the chairs opposite the couch. "All right, Harmon, darling, do you remember what I told you about a mother's intuition?"

"Trish!" Frank scolded her teasingly.

"No, it's okay, Frank. Yes, mom, I remember."

With a smile on his face, Harm reached out for Mac and pulled her into a long kiss. He grinned sheepishly - as did Mac - when he released her from his arms and turned back to his mother.

"OH MY GOD!" Trish exclaimed. "You didn't do that just for my benefit, did you?"

Harm rolled his eyes, "MOM! There I finally give you what you wanted to see for so long, and you accuse me of doing that just for your benefit?"

"Just because of that reason."

"Mom, I love Mac, and she loves me, and we are..."

Harm was cut off when his beeper went off. He silently cursed the damn beeper for going off right at that moment as he reached for it.

"Damn. It's from Shepard. Lt. Tompkins was admitted to hospital after a hit and run." Harm looked up from the small electronic device in his hands. "Mom, I am sorry, but we have to go."

"You have? Oh, it was such a nice evening."

"Indeed, it was a very nice evening, Trish."

Mac stood and went to hug her.

"I am sorry, Sarah, that we didn't have the time to really welcome you in this family. I hope you will stop by before you head back to DC so we can finish this."

"We sure will, mom."






0600 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
San Diego Naval Hospital
San Diego, CA


Harm and Mac stepped out of the elevator on the fourth floor. Cmdr. Miller was already waiting for them.

"I am so glad you came. I didn't know who else I should call."

"Please, Commander, tell us what happened."

"Jillian, she took the kids. I came home this afternoon, and found a note from her that she took the kids and would be taking them to a nicer place. And that Miranda and I would pay for what we did. I tried to call Miranda, but she didn't pick up. She didn't answer any of my messages. It was not like her to do anything like that. So I ran by her house, and her neighbor told me that she was run over by a car right in front of her apartment building. I know it was Jillian, but I can't prove it. Nobody saw a damn thing. Please, you have to help me find my children. The police won't do anything, she is their mother. They have no witnesses for the hit and run yet either, Miranda is still unconscious. I know Jillian is somewhere out there, and heaven knows what she is doing to my kids. I can't wait until Thursday to have the police file a report on missing persons."

"Commander, please, you need to calm down."

Mac placed a comforting hand on Cmdr. Miller's shoulder and indicated for him to sit down in one of the chairs in the waiting room.

"Is there any place she could haven taken the children to? Family, close friends?" Harm asked and sat down in one of the chairs as well.

Cmdr. Miller shook his head, "Jillian's sister, she lives in Boston. They are not on good terms, so I doubt she will even call her. As for friends, I don't know. I don't think she was close enough with anyone to take the kids there. She never mentioned anyone from work. Our friends are mainly my friends, from work, back from the Academy."

"You said she worked at Mercy? Have you called there and asked if she might have left a number where she can be reached in case of an emergency?"

"No, I didn't think about that. Maybe someone at Mercy has an idea where she might be."

"Commander, why don't you let the Colonel and I handle this from here. We will drive over to Mercy Hospital and see what we can find out. The moment we find out anything about the whereabouts of your children, we
will call you."

"Thank you, Cmdr. Rabb."







0650 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
Mercy Hospital
San Diego, CA


"What is taking them so long?" Mac uttered impatiently, more to herself than to anyone else.

10 minutes ago, they had been seated in the waiting room of the surgery ward. A nurse had told them that someone would come to answer their questions as soon as possible.

"Are you Cmdr. Rabb and Col. Mackenzie? I was told you needed to speak to me about one of our doctors?" a middle aged man asked and shook hands with them. "Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I am Dr. Bryan Oldman."

"Dr. Oldman, we are from JAG, the Judge Advocate General Corps. We need to speak to Dr. Jillian Miller. Do you have any idea where we can find her?"

"Dr. Jillian Miller? She was put on medical leave 4 weeks ago."

"Medical leave? Why is that?" Mac asked surprised.

"I am sorry, ma'am, but this is something I can't tell you unless I have the patient's permission."

"Dr. Oldman, Dr. Miller is a possible suspect in a hit and run that injured a Naval officer. She disappeared with her 3 children this afternoon, and no one has seen her since."

"Damn, I prayed to God that something like this would never happen." Dr. Oldman sighed. "Look, Commander, Colonel, you didn't hear this from me. I will be in major trouble if my superior finds out I told you confidential information. Dr. Jillian Miller is treated for schizophrenia. She was always doing fine as long as she took her medication. However, a couple of months ago, she stopped seeing her psychiatrist, and didn't take her medication on a regularly basis anymore. From one minute to the next, she was a completely different person. She was losing control one day, and almost killed a patient. She was put on medical leave until she would start seeing her psychiatrist again and take her medication regularly."

"Who is her psychiatrist? We might need to talk to them."

"I am, sir. I guess that is why I was paged to answer your questions. If she really has those kids, and if she really ran someone over with her car, those kids are in great danger. Dr. Miller is suicidal, and I fear that if she is losing control again, she might take the kids with her to the place she always declared 'nicer than the world ever can be'."






0725 ZULU
Tuesday, December 18th
7th Precinct
San Diego, CA


Harm's finger annoyingly tapped on the table in front of him. He looked over at Mac who was yawning. Glancing at the clock on the wall, he realized how late it had gotten without him noticing.

"Why does it feel that all we have done since leaving my mother's house is waiting?" he asked, sighing.

"I don't know." Mac placed her elbow on the table and her chin on her hand. "All I can tell you is that I am absolutely tired. 3 months ago it wouldn't have been a problem for me. Look at what you have done to
me." she teased him, a smile playing across her lips.

"Oh, as far as I remember, it takes two to get pregnant." he counteracted, a smile on his face as well. "I know, it's been a long day for you. As soon as we are over with this here, I'll take you back to our quarters and you can get some sleep. You need it."

Mac's eyes drifted close for a moment, but snapped open the moment the detective who had seated them at this table returned.

"I am sorry, sir, ma'am, but Sgt. Carruthers told me that you should come back tomorrow morning when I called him. There is nothing he can do at the moment."

"Tomorrow? Officer, there is a suicidal woman out there who kidnapped three children. Can't you just file an APB?"

"Sir, these are her kids, she has every right to take them wherever she wants. We can't just file an APB because her husband does not agree to her actions. I am sorry, sir. You have to wait until tomorrow morning. Then our Captain will be back as well, and if you don't agree to how Sgt. Carruthers is handling this case, you can complain to him."

"I don't think you understand. Those three kids could be dead by tomorrow morning. Mrs. Miller is highly suicidal and has threatened to take her children's lives as well as her own. What do I have to do that you will finally believe me and do something to stop her?"

"I am sorry, Commander, but I am not handling this case. Sgt. Carruthers is a very good detective, and if he says there is nothing we can do, there really is nothing. I am sure he has considered the fact that these children might be in danger. As much as I want to help you, I can't. It is out of my hands. Sorry."

"Thank you for your help anyway." Harm replied through gritted teeth.

The detective nodded at them shortly before he turned and left to his desk.






0810 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA


Harm stopped the car in front of their temporary quarters and turned the engine off. He smiled when he glanced over at Mac who had fallen asleep in the passenger seat.

"Hey Mac, we are home."

Mac murmured something in her sleep that sounded like 'not now, Harm' and tried to get more comfortable in her seat. When the seatbelt held her securely in her place, she slowly realized where she was and opened her eyes.

"Sorry, I guess I fell asleep." she mumbled and unfastened the seatbelt.

"Let me get you to bed." Harm smiled and exited the car.

He quickly rushed to the other side, and extending his hand, helped Mac get out. She was dead tired, barely able to keep her eyes open. Harm pushed the car door shut behind Mac. Then he placed his arm around her waist and guided her inside the dark house.

They made their way to the bedroom through the darkness, and Harm silently closed the door behind them. Mac plopped down on the bed immediately, kicked her shoes off and snuggled into the sheets.

"C'mon, you need to get out of your clothes." Harm chuckled and pulled her back up in a sitting position.

"I don't care, Harm. I am just tired. I want to sleep."

"Then let me help you. You are not going to bed dressed in this."

Mac gave him a look, but nevertheless she lifted her arms, allowing Harm to take her shirt off. He placed it on the chair in the corner and picked up the tee she had worn for bed the night before.

Quickly, he slipped it over her head before he reached for her pants. He pulled the zipper down, and his hand came to rest on her still flat abdomen.

"Can you feel the baby in there?"

Mac shook her head sleepily, "Not really. It's still too early. I don't think you can hear its heartbeat either."

Harm pressed his ear against Mac's stomach and listened.

"Hey baby, this is your daddy... Do you think the baby can hear me? I mean I cannot hear it, but maybe it can hear us."

"Maybe?" Mac yawned again as Harm removed his ear from her belly. "She's really wearing her mommy out though she's not even born."

"She?"

"Or he. I just feel awkward calling this baby an 'it'. It's a human
being you know."

"I know. So you want to know if it's a boy or a girl before it's born?"

"I am not sure. I don't think I want to know, but I also don't want to call our baby an 'it'."

"Well, in this case, I just will call you junior. What do you think, junior?"

Harm placed his hand on Mac's flat abdomen.

"No objection? I think junior and I have a great way of communication."

Mac smiled while she listened to Harm talking to their unborn child.

"Look, Harm, why don't you get ready for bed and I will finish getting dressed myself. I think I can manage slipping out of these pants and into my sweats."

5 minutes later, Harm and Mac were snuggled in the covers. Mac's eyes had fallen close the moment her head hit the pillow. She was content in Harm's arms who gently brushed her hair. Her breathing was steady and even, letting Harm know that she had already fallen asleep. He smiled and placed a quick kiss on her forehead before he closed his eyes as well and drifted off to dreamland.






1445 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA


Harm rolled over in bed only to find the spot next to him empty. His arm blindly searched for Mac, but apparently she had left the bed.

"Mac?" he mumbled and opened his eyes only to find the room empty.

Sighing, he swung his legs over the edge of the bed and ruffled his hair. Then he got up to look for Mac. He swung the door open and bumped into Susan who was on her way to the kitchen.

"Good morning, Commander." she greeted him. "What were you doing in the Colonel's bedroom?"

"I am looking for her. Have you seen her?"

Susan shook her head, "Nope, but it sounds like someone is in the bathroom. Why don't you check it out?"

Harm just nodded sleepily and turned to his right towards the bathroom. He didn't even knock before he opened the door which caused Susan to cringe slightly. Something was going on between those two, something apparently everyone knew about except her.

Silently, she sneaked up to the door, listening to what was going on inside. Harm hadn't closed the door fully, so she could see through the crevice what was going on inside.

Mac was kneeling on the floor in front of the toilet, puking her guts out while Harm was desperately searching for a wash cloth.

"You could have woken me, Mac." he said and wet the cloth he had found before he handed it over to Mac.

"And tell you what? Gee, Harm, I am about to puke, want to watch?"

Mac flushed the toilet and got up, running the wet cloth over her face.

"Are you sure you are all right? You look a little green around your nose."

"I am fine, don't worry. Morning sickness just seemed to have caught up with me. I am surprised it didn't happen earlier. I feel a lot better now. Don't know though if this is all worth for what we get in return. After all it's me going through hell now and you having the fun afterwards. You'll be on diaper duty the first month." she smirked, giving him a wink with her eye.

"I guess I don't have to ask you what you want for breakfast." he asked, giving her a grin.

"Please, spare me with food. Just the thought of it makes me sick. Uh oh, here we go again."

Mac quickly turned back over the toilet. Harm reached over and brushed her hair out of her face when he caught a glimpse of Susan in the mirror. Irritated at first, he slowly realized that she obviously had listened to their conversation.

Mac slowly was starting to feel better, so she let herself fall backwards, feeling that Harm was there to catch her in his strong arms.

"Damn, I don't know how Harriet survived five weeks of this
the first time and three the second."

"See what she got in return. A beautiful boy and girl. You're a Marine, Mac, you can handle this."

"I'll remind you the next time you come down with the flu and are puking your guts out. You were whining like a baby the last time."

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"Was not!"

"Was too!" Mac tapped him on his chest. "You, my friend, were lying on the bathroom floor, cursing heaven and hell, and whining like a little boy for a mere two hours."

Harm deliberately cleared his throat, "Maybe I was. Why don't you freshen up and meet me in the kitchen for breakf..., a cup of coff..., a glass of milk, all right?"

"Be there in five." Mac chuckled and pulled out of his embrace.

Harm got up and swung the bathroom door open, expecting to find Susan on the other side. Apparently, she had already made her way back to the kitchen because the hallway was empty.

Harm rubbed the back of his head and made his way to the kitchen as well. He found Susan sitting at the counter, a cup of coffee in her hands.

"So, does the Admiral know what is going on here, Commander?" she inquired in a nonchalant tone.

"What do you mean?" he replied innocently, pouring himself a cup of coffee as well.

"Oh puh-leeze, I may be blonde, but I am not stupid, Commander. Does the Admiral know or not? If not, you know I have to report you two."

"And tell him what? That you saw me taking care of the Colonel who got sick to her stomach? Besides, Lieutenant, I saw you hiding behind the door. Do you want me to report that to the Admiral?"

"I was just concerned about the Colonel and wanted to ask if I could be of help, but then I saw you already took care of her. So how long are you screwing her already?"

"Excuse me?" Harm exclaimed. "You just overstepped your boarders, Lt. Shepard. My private life is of no concern to you, neither is the Colonel's, understood?"

"Understood, Commander. I just thought that in a couple of weeks, the Colonel won't be able to hide it any longer and everyone had to know."

"Know what?" Mac asked curiously upon entering the kitchen.

"Lt. Shepard here thought it was appropriate to eavesdrop while we were in the bathroom. She asked me how long I am screwing you already - just to quote her."

Mac's eyes grew wide. Fuming, she turned to Susan, a stern look on her face.

"Lieutenant, my personal life is none of your business, understood? That's why it is called personal. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, ma'am!"

"If I ever find you again snooping around in my life, I will take legal action against you. And believe me, it is not going to be pleasant for you. And if I ever find you eavesdropping on the Commander and me again, I will take care of you myself."

"Yes, ma'am!"

The phone interrupted the heated conversation in the kitchen. Mac quickly reached behind her and grabbed the receiver of the phone at the wall and answered.

"Lt. Col. Mackenzie speaking... Good morning, Commander... Yeah, that is fine with us. We can be there in 30 minutes... Yes, we found out some news last night at Mercy, but considering the fact it was already late we didn't want to disturb you... No, I am sorry. We don't know yet where the children are. Hopefully we will once we have talked to Sgt. Carruthers... All right, we will be there."

Mac hung up the phone and turned back to Harm and Susan.

"That was Cmdr. Miller. Lt. Tompkins woke up about an hour ago, confirming that it indeed was his wife who run her over. She wants to talk us."

Susan placed her cup back on the coffee table and was about to head for the stairs when Harm called her back.

"Lt. Shepard, you will take the first flight back to DC today."

Surprised, Susan turned and faced him, "Excuse me?"

"Admiral's order. Officially, this case is over and your presence is not needed anymore. The Admiral has work enough for you at Ops."

"If I may ask, what makes your presence needed at Miramar if this case is over?"

"The Admiral was gracious enough to grant the Colonel and I three days off to catch up with my mother. Any more questions, Lieutenant?"

"No, sir, ma'am."





1532 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
San Diego Naval Hospital
San Diego, CA


The corridor to room 432 was long and not very crowded this early. Visiting hours were not until another 2 hours, but Harm and Mac knew they didn't have that much of time. If there was a person who could help them finding the 3 Miller children, it was their father.

Harm shortly knocked at the door to room 423 before he slowly opened the door and stepped inside. He found Cmdr. Miller sitting in a chair next to Lt. Tompkins' bed.

"Commander, Colonel, good morning." he greeted them and rose from his chair. "I am sorry I called you early. I hope I didn't wake you."

"No, you didn't." Harm shook hands with Cmdr. Miller before he turned to Lt. Tompkins. "How are you doing, Lieutenant?"

"Pretty sore, Commander, but thank you for asking. Peter told me you had news about the children. Are they all right?"

"We can't say. We don't know yet where they are." Mac replied to Lt. Tompkins' question and approached the bed. "Commander, why didn't you tell us your wife is suffering from schizophrenia?"

"Excuse me? Who told you that?"

"Dr. Oldman. He treated her at Mercy."

"He told us she was suspended from work 4 weeks ago for nearly killing a patient." Harm finished.

"I... I didn't know that." Cmdr. Miller stammered. "She always seemed to be all right, not mentally sick or anything. Sure, sometimes she was behaving in a strange way, but I always knocked it off, thinking it was just her way."

"As long as she was taking her medication, she was doing fine according to Dr. Oldman, but apparently she stopped taking her pills a couple of months ago and didn't see her psychiatrist anymore."

"Oh my god, my children are in the hands of a psycho!" Cmdr. Miller cried, slumping down in the chair. "I don't believe it. How could I misjudge her that much?"

"Commander, I know we already asked you this last night, but don't you have at least the slightest idea where your wife could be? We need something to start with."

"No, ma'am, I am sorry. If I think about it, I realize I didn't even know Jillian that much."

"Peter, why don't you let the Colonel and the Commander go through Jillian's personal belongings. Maybe they can find something." Lt. Tompkins uttered and sat up in bed. "They know what to look for, we don't."

Cmdr. Miller nodded and fumbled for his keys in his pocket. He handed them over to Harm.

"Feel free to go through anything that might be of help for you to find my children. If you have questions, call. You know where to find me."

"We will, Commander."







1619 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Cmdr. Peter Miller's house
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA


The first thing Harm noticed when he entered the living room was the red light on the answering machine blinking wildly. He reached for the machine and listened.

"You have one new message. 10:32pm."

A short beep sounded through the room before Harm heard a boy's terrified voice.

"Daddy, where are you? Why don't you pick up? Daddy, come and get us, please. We don't want to be here anymore. Mommy is scaring us. I don't know where we are, just that it is a Motel 6 we are staying in. Please, come and get us, daddy, please, please, please! I wanna go home, daddy, please!"

Harm pressed the button for the tape to stop. When he looked up he found Mac standing in the doorway. She was leaning against the doorframe, her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"What is it, Mac?"

"Nothing."

Mac turned on her heels and left the living room. Knowing that something was terribly wrong, he picked up his hat he had placed on the table next to the answering machine and followed Mac. He found her sitting on the bottom stairs to the upstairs bedrooms. Her face was buried in her hands, and she was crying.

"Sarah, what is wrong?" he asked and sat down on the stairs next to her.

He placed his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, allowing her to cry into his chest. After a few seconds, she settled down and pulled back.

"I am sorry." she sniffed and brushed the last tears out of her eyes.

"You don't have to."

"I hate being on an emotional roller coaster ride. I start crying in the most inappropriate moments. As much as I love being pregnant with your child, I hate these hormone attacks."

"No, don't blame your pregnancy for your crying. I know you well enough to know that there is more to this. Want to talk about it?"

"Hearing that little boy's voice made me remember my past. I know how desperate he is, how it feels to desperately want to get away, to call for someone to get you out of your misery. We need to find them, soon."

"What happened in your past, Sarah? Tell me. I want to help you."

"I can't, I am sorry. It's too hard. I thought I had finally put everything to rest, but apparently I hadn't."

"You know I am there if you want to talk, don't you?"

With a smile on her face, Mac reached her hand out to gently caress Harm's cheek, "I know, Harm. Thank you."

"Now c'mon, we've got to find three children. They are somewhere out there in a Motel 6, waiting for us to find them."

Harm reached for her hands and pulled her up to her feet.

1658 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Miramar MCAS
San Diego, CA


"You don't have anyone registered by the name of Miller?" Mac quickly looked up from her phone when she saw Harm entering the living room.

"I am looking for a woman in her mid 30s. She is travelling with three children, a girl aged 5 and twin boys aged 7. It may be possible she signed in under a different name."

Harm mouthed something to her and was about to turn when he saw Mac raising her hand to stop him from leaving.

"You have? What is the name she signed with?... Okay. You said she paid for two nights?... Please make sure she won't leave with the children. We will be there in about three hours. Thank you."

Mac disconnected the phone and looked up at Harm.

"We got a match. Last night Jillian Miller signed in at a Motel 6 in Carpenteria, a couple of miles south of Santa Barbara. Oddly enough, she signed in under Jillian Tompkins. The clerk told me she paid for 2 nights, and they haven't left their room yet."

"All right, then let's get going. I already packed our bags in the car. We'll call Cmdr. Miller on the way."







2004 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Motel 6
Carpenteria, CA


Harm pulled the car into the empty parking spot next to the office. He turned off the engine and left the car, following Mac inside the office.

"I am Lt. Col. Sarah Mackenzie." Mac uttered firmly and showed the clerk her ID. "We talked on the phone a couple of hours ago."

"Oh yes, Colonel. I had an eye on room 18, that is where they are staying. It's right down that way. No one left that room yet, and we didn't send cleaning in yet as Mrs. Tompkins put the 'do not disturb' sign on the door."

"Is this the family we are talking about?"

Harm showed the young woman a picture of the Miller family.

"Oh yes, that they are. That little girl is such a darling. They checked in last night a couple of minutes before my shift ended. I remember she was so shy, always clutching her teddy to her chest. If I may ask, why are you looking for them?"

"She kidnapped the children from a Marine Corps Air Station down in San Diego yesterday afternoon."

"Oh my. No wonder they were all so calm and shy."

"Do you have a second key for the room?"

"I am sorry, sir, I don't think I am allowed to give it to you. I would really like to, but..."

The young woman hesitated for a moment before she retrieved a key card, quickly coded it and placed it on the counter.

"I hope I am not going to lose my job if my boss finds out about this."

Harm shortly smiled at her before he took the card, "If it comes to that, we will gladly talk to him."

"Thank you, sir, ma'am."

Harm and Mac quickly left the office and turned to their right towards the rooms. Room 18 was the only one with a red 'do not disturb' sign at the door. Mac looked over at Harm before she knocked at the door.

"Mrs. Miller, this is Lt. Col. Mackenzie and Cmdr. Rabb from the United States JAG Corps. Please open the door." she called, but didn't get a response.

She knocked again, and again did not get a response. She nodded at Harm who put the card into the slot and pulled the handle when a small green light flashed at the door.

Slowly, he pushed the door open and they both stepped into a dark room. Mac blindly reached for the lights behind her. She gasped audible after she'd flicked them on.

On each of the beds, a young boy was lying, obviously sleeping. Mac rushed to the one sleeping on the bed next to her, Harm immediately was by the side of the boy lying in the bed at the far end of the room.

"I got a pulse." he called after he had checked out the boy.

"Me, too. Look."

Mac help up an empty bottle of a sedative that was sitting on the night stand next to the telephone.

"Dammit!" Harm exclaimed.

He reached for the phone and dialed 0 for the front desk.

"Yes, I need an ambulance in room 18 ASAP!"

He smashed down the receiver and sat on the bed, pulling the boy into his lap. When he looked up, he saw that Mac had done the same. In her arms, she was cradling the young boy and gently stroked his hair.

"I called for an ambulance." the young woman from the office called upon entering the room. "Oh my God! What happened to them? Are they all right?"

"They are drugged. Ma'am, I thought you said nobody left this room."

"No, sir. I started my shift at 7 this morning. I checked on the rooms and the 'do not disturb' sign was outside on the door, so I figured they were sleeping. And the car they arrived in is still parked out front."

"Is it possible for us to speak with the person who was on duty last night?"

"That would be Jerry, sir. I can call him, if you want."

"That would be nice."

The young woman shortly nodded at them before she left the room.

"God, how long is it taking this damn ambulance to get here?" Mac uttered frustrated.

Suddenly, the boy who was laying in Mac's arms began convulsing. A look of panic washed over her face as she tried to hold the boy still in her lap but didn't succeed.

She didn't even see when Harm sprung up from the opposite bed. All she noticed was the boy being lifted out of her arms.

Harm clutched the boy close to his chest, keeping him as still as he could. His eyes fell down on Mac who was desperately trying to keep back the tears welling in her eyes.

"I am sorry." she sniffed before she sprung up from the bed and ran out of the room.






2031 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Motel 6
Carpenteria, CA


Harm watched the ambulance sped of with Kieran and Marvin Miller before he went in search for Mac. He found her on the back of the motel
sitting on a small wall that separated the pool from the parking area.

"Mac..." he started as he sat down next to her.

"Don't." she admonished him.

"I want you to take the car and drive back to La Jolla to my mother's house. I will join you there as soon as this is over."

"You want to shut me out?"

"I am worried about you, Mac."

"I can cope, don't worry."

Mac sprung up from the wall and started to walk off.

"Sarah, please." Harm pleaded desperately as he followed her. "I hate seeing you like this."

"Do you think I like being like that?"

Tears were welling again in Mac's eyes. She desperately tried to blink them back, but didn't quite succeed. With a comforting smile on his lips, Harm reached out to gently wipe them out of the corner of her eyes.

"Being like what? Confused? Concerned? Vulnerable?"

"All of that."

"What would you say if I told you that this is just natural and that it comes with the pregnancy?"

"Then I am going to damn you for getting me into this!" she exclaimed.

Shocked, Harm pulled away. Never had he expected to hear something like that coming from Mac.

"I am sorry, Harm, I didn't mean it like that. Damn me for being like this! I am sorry, I didn't mean to say that."

The tears were now trickling down Mac's cheeks, so Harm pulled her into his arms and held her close.

"I don't cope with pregnancy very well, do I?" she sniffed.

"This is all new for you - as well as for me."

"I don't know why, but all my emotions go haywire. Do you know how that feels when you start crying or burst out laughing in the most inappropriate moments?"

"No, I don't. I can't even imagine. Maybe we should just let the police take over from here, go home and really talk about this... baby thing. We haven't done that yet."

"Yes, we need to talk about this, but first we have to find a little girl."

Mac looked up at Harm and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"That's the Sarah Mackenzie I know."

Together, they walked back to the office where Jerry, the guy on duty the previous night, had just arrived. He had seen the ambulance drive off and immediately sensed what this was about.

"You want to talk to me about the woman from room 18?"

Harm nodded, "That is right. What can you tell us about her?"

"Not much. I was jolted awake around 6 this morning by her knocking. She had a sleeping girl on her arm and kept asking for a map of this area. I handed her one, and she asked for the Montecito hiking trails. I couldn't help her with that though. She asked me to call her a cab which I did. About 10 minutes later, she was gone with the girl."

"And you didn't find it odd that she didn't leave in her car and asked for a hiking trail that early?" Mac inquired.

"I did, but what should I do? Some people like to watch the sunrise from the trails."

"Could you see if she had a backpack with her, a water bottle, anything?"

"She had a backpack with her. I figured it was the girl's. It actually was a teddy bear with a zipper to stuff your belongings inside. That was all I could see."

"Thanks for you help, Jerry."

"Anytime, sir, ma'am."

Harm and Mac left the office and walked over to their car. While Harm reached for his phone to call the local police, Mac climbed inside the car and looked for their map of California.

She found it in the glove compartment and took it out. A moment later she spread it over to hood. It didn't take her long to spot Montecito on the map. She looked at Harm when he finished his phone call.

"The police will send out a helo to observe the area. Cold Springs Trail and Hot Springs Trail are closed as they had a landslide there last week. Two possible trails she could have taken are the San Ysidro Trail which is an old fire road through the woods. The second is the Romero Canyon Trail. This is a hiking trail that takes you right on top of the mountain. You have a perfect view of Montecito and the islands from up there."

" How comes you know these trails?" Mac asked astonished.

"We often came for hiking in the summers, Frank and I that is. He was desperately trying to get me to acknowledge him as the new man in my mother's life, so he thought a couple of days camping in the wilderness would do us some good. We came here the first time I was 12. Not a very fond memory cuz he wanted to know if it was okay if he married my mom."

"Knowing you, I hope you didn't tell him to go to hell."

"No, not really, but I guess I was very rude. I was so fixed on the idea that my father would come back one day that I sadly never gave him a chance. I think I told him even if he screwed my mom, he wouldn't become my new dad. Boy was he shocked to hear something like that coming from a 12 year old."

"I can imagine. But at least you had someone who took you on vacation sometime..."

Harm's eyes grew wide when he heard that. Mac began to grin sheepishly when she realized she actually had said the last part out loud. She prayed Harm would not ask about it, and gladly, he didn't. He turned his gaze back on the map instead.

"Which trail do you think she took?" he asked.

"My gut tells me Romero Canyon."

"Mine too. Let's go."





2106 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Romero Canyon Trail
Montecito, CA


Harm stopped the car alongside the road and turned off the engine. His gaze wandered over to the beginning of the hiking trail when his cell phone began to rang. He reached for it and got out of the car.

He leaned on the roof and signaled for Mac with a thumb up that they were at the right trail. He put the phone back into his pocket.

"The helo reported two persons on top of the mountain, an adult and a child. They are sending two lifeguards our way, but they won't be here for another 30 minutes."

"I don't think we should wait this long. Let's go."

Mac started to walk off, but Harm grabbed her by her upper arm and held her back.

"Mac, you don't know the area. It's a long climb up to the top and these uniform shoes are not exactly the best to go climbing. Not to talk about the uniform itself."

Without saying anything, Mac snatched the keys from Harm's hand and went to open the trunk. She popped it open and pulled out a bag.

"What are you doing there?" Harm asked, not having a clue what she was up to.

"I am looking for this."

Mac pulled a pair of sports shoes out of the bag, along with a pair of jeans and a sweater and threw them Harm's way. He just laughed as he caught them. Sometimes Mac was unbelievable.

" What would you have done if he had left the bags back at Miramar?"
Harm inquired as he started to unbutton his uniform shirt to slip
into his sweater.

"Don't know." Mac replied and placed her bag - from which she had retrieved a pair of jeans, a sweater and a pair of shoes as well - back in the trunk. "Maybe I would have taken my chance clad in this uniform."

Not even two minutes later, they were out of their uniform and dressed casual in jeans and shirt. They looked like tourists, and not like two JAG investigators at all.

Harm quickly retrieved Mac's and his sunglasses and a bottle of water from the car before he followed Mac up the hiking path.





2146 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Romero Canyon Trail
Montecito, CA


Mac suddenly stopped when her stomach began to growl. She grimaced and hoped that this went unnoticed by Harm, but apparently it didn't. Harm stopped as well and turned around.

"Tell me this was just your stomach I just heard and not a bear."

"It was my stomach. Sorry." she chuckled.

Harm jokingly shook his head, "Marine, Marine."

"Hey, you could have fed me, Sailor."

"Last time I checked you were old enough to tell me when you are hungry. I can't read minds you know."

They both started to laugh and continued their path up the mountain. This time, Mac walked in front of Harm on the small path up. She let out a loud gasp when he suddenly reached his arm around her and held a sweetie in front of her face.

"God, Harm, never do that again!" she scolded him laughing and took the sweetie out of his hand. "Where did you get that from?"

"I picked it up at the hospital information counter last night. Don't know why, but it sure comes in handy right now, doesn't it? Anything to feed my hungry Marine."

"You are so sweet."

Mac placed a quick kiss on his lips before she unwrapped the sweetie and put it into her mouth. She tilted her head back and looked up.

" What do you think how long it will take us up to the top?"

"45 minutes to an hour I'd guess. Looks steeper than it is."

"So this gives us time to talk?"

"Climbing up a mountain is not exactly what I pictured us doing when we have this discussion, but okay, go on."

Mac slowed down her pace when the path suddenly was wide enough for both of them to walk next to each other as they continued their pace.

"The most important thing first - us. Where is this going to take us?"

"Where you want it to take us, Mac."

"Gee, now that's a helpful answer." Mac chuckled. "Seriously. Why do we even bother do have two apartments if we spend all the time together anyway?"

"So we'll move in together."

"Move in together? Just like that?"

"No, not just like that. Once we are back in DC, we'll look for a new place for us."

"A new place?" Mac asked astonished. "I didn't exactly think about getting a new place."

"You want us to move in your apartment?"

"No, I thought more about your apartment. It's spacey, and it bears fond memories."

A wide grin spread across Mac's face. No, Harm hadn't forgotten what she was talking about - their first night together, the announcement that they were going to be parents and a lot more.

"I know you put a lot of work into renovating that place, and it looks incredible."

"But, Mac, we have a baby on the way. There won't be any space for junior. Though my bedroom is rather big, I don't think we could fit a crib into the bedroom and still be able to walk."

"I knew you'd say that. And you are right. Heck, what was I thinking? Your place has no space for a crib, neither has mine, so this means..."

"... getting a new place." Harm supplied for her. "I don't think it's that bad. This will be our start as a family. You, me and our baby."

"And what do you have in mind, Commander? An apartment in downtown DC?"

"Jesus, no! That would be no place I'd want to raise my child. I always knew that once I was going to be a father, I'd leave DC and buy a house in Virginia with a huge backyard for my kids to play."

"And where in Virginia would one find such a house?"

"I honestly have no clue. I guess wherever we feel like home. I like the neighborhood Bud and Harriet moved to."

"Uh uh, that's out of consideration, Flyboy." Mac laughed. "I am not going to move anywhere near Bud and Harriet. As much as I love those two as our friends, the least I need is having them over after work. I feel the moment we move into their neighborhood, we will see more of them than we will see of each other."

"You got a point. How about we'll see about that when we get back?"

"Sounds got to me." Mac sighed as she climbed over a rock to get to the path about 4 feet above of her.

"Let's talk about number two." she panted. "Family. Our child needs a grandfather."

"You are talking about Frank, aren't you?" Harm inquired as Mac helped him get up on the trail.

"Yes, I am. I doesn't want him to be known only as the guy who married your mother."

When Harm started to object, Mac raised her hand.

"Let me finish this, okay? I know how much the memory of your father means to you, Harm, and our child will know about him. Junior will know that his grandfather was a naval aviator like his father, and he will know that he was shot down in Vietnam on Christmas Eve. You will tell him everything there is to know about a man called Harmon Rabb Sr. I just think this child needs the family we never had. After all these years, you got a chance to show Frank how grateful you are for what he did for you and your mother in making him your child's grandfather."

"I don't know what it is like to have your grandfather around. I can barely remember how it was when my father was around." Harm sighed. "So why should I deny my son or daughter the right to have a grandfather if there is someone they can call just that?"

Mac smiled, "I was hoping you would say that."

"You know, some people say you get wiser with age, but I think you got wiser with pregnancy!"

"Oh, you!"

Mac nudged him into his side and started to laugh. Harm shortly glanced at her grinning before they continued their path up the hiking trail.





2232 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Romero Canyon Trail
Montecito, CA


"What's that supposed to mean?" Harm asked and took a gulp of water out of the water bottle in his hands before he handed it over to Mac.

"It's supposed to mean that we should consider not being partners at JAG anymore if the Admiral decides we both can stay for whatever reason he can come up with."

"But why? I thought we both worked together pretty well. I don't want a new partner."

"We do and neither do I. Look, I want to keep my job once our baby is born. I don't want to go into the reserves like Harriet did after AJ was born. But fact is, if we stay being partners at JAG, Chegwidden will send us both out for investigations from time to time. Who will take care of our little one then? I don't want junior to stay home with a babysitter. I want us to take care of and raise our child, not a babysitter, but I feel like that's going to happen if we continued being partners."

"Phew, point for you, counselor. I never even thought about that. Do you realize how much having a baby is going to affect our lives?"

"A baby changes everything. From tiny things like what detergent to buy to big ones like being responsible for a human being for the rest of your life."

"Maybe I should get a change of designator."

Mac stopped dead in her tracks when she heard that.

"Oh, no, Mac, not what you think." he appeased her. "I don't think about going back to flying. I could never leave you and our child, I hope you know that. I thought about transferring out of JAG for a job at the Pentagon. For the last two years Bobbie Latham is convincing me to act as a liaison for the Pentagon and JAG Headquarters. Loads of paper work."

"No, I don't want you to transfer out of JAG. If the Admiral approves our request to stay at JAG both once we get back, I don't want you to go."

"But what if he doesn't?"

"Then we'll talk about it again. I'd terribly miss opposing you in court. Besides, you walked in those shoes for a very brief time, and as far as I can remember, you didn't like it very much. It would not be you. You need the court room action and the investigations as much as I do."

"That's true. I first realized how much I loved getting my point clear in court when I was back on the Patrick Henry. Where else could you fire two holes into the roof without much punishment, huh? Besides, it was worth seeing you duck under a table, Marine."

"Marines take cover, they never duck, Sailor!" Mac laughed. "And about that punishment for putting two bullets into the roof, we all had to pay for that, not only you. Remember our budget was cut drastically the next year and almost no flights were granted for any investigation."

"Don't remind me. I had to share a bed with Bud. The most embarrassing night in my whole life. Do you know he talks in his sleep?"

"He does? What did he say?"

"I don't wanna go into details, but I can tell you he dreamed about Harriet. He moaned her name about half a dozen times during the night, and the noises he made..."

"I would have offered you the chair in my room you know."

"You were involved with Dalton Lowne at that time. I was sure the last thing that guy wanted to see was me sleeping in one room with you. He didn't like me, and heaven knows what he would have done if he found out."

"You didn't like him either, Harm."

"I still don't know what attracted you to that guy."

"It was the life he lived, the job he had - a life and job the Marine Corps couldn't offer me. I am glad though I traded the guy driving a Porsche for the guy flying Tomcats."

"You are?"

"Yes, I am. From the day I met you in that rose garden, I somehow knew there was something special between us. You knew so little about me, I was a total stranger to you, but you stood by my side all the time. You didn't question any of my decisions, and you didn't judge me for all I told you about my past." Mac shortly chuckled to herself. "I think every other guy would have been mad as hell at me for holding him at gunpoint in front of my uncle."

"I guess it took us both a lot of detours before we finally ended up where we are now. We've come a long way together, and I honestly wouldn't want to miss any second of it. We shared good times, and rough time. And though we seemed to have grown apart at one point, we found our way back on track again."

Smiling, Mac turned to Harm. She reached for his hand and gave it a light squeeze before they continued their path up the mountain. They just crossed the last obstacle that was keeping them from the top when they heard the cries of a small child.

Mac started to run, Harm following her. Neither of them cared about the unsolid ground they were walking on or the branches forcing them to stumble. All they cared about was a terrified little girl. When they reached the top, they found Roberta Miller hovering over her mother's lifeless body.

"Sweetie, what's the matter?" Harm asked, extending his hand in Roberta's direction.

The girl immediately backed off, scooting away from her mother's body and dangerously near to a cliff behind her that she obviously wasn't aware of.

"It's fine. I will help you." Harm tried to appease the terrified girl.

He made another step into Roberta's direction, and again, she backed away.

"Mommy, help mommy." she sobbed.

Mac knelt down next to Jillian Miller's body, her eyes never leaving little Roberta. She checked for her pulse, but couldn't find any. Nevertheless, she forced a smile on her face.

"She's fine, Roberta, she's just sleeping."

Again, Harm extended his hand into Roberta's direction. He needed to get her away from the cliff or she might fall.

"Sweetheart, give me your hand." he uttered. "Please, Roberta, please!"

The girl nodded slowly and started to get up when her food touch unsolid ground and she started to sway backwards. Within a second, both Harm and Mac dove for the girl. Mac caught the right sleeve of her jacket while Harm had lunged for her left side.

He could not get a hold of her. Instead, he found himself on unsolid ground and fell... and fell... and fell what seemed to be like eternity to him.

The last thing he remembered was Mac calling for him. Then the world around him went black.

Mac was down on her knees, watching down the cliff where Harm was lying.

"HARM!" she cried, but didn't get a response from him.

"What? What? What?" Roberta Miller sobbed and crawled near the cliff next to Mac to see what had happened.

"Stay back, sweetheart, you might fall."

Mac gently pushed the girl behind and looked down at Harm again. He was lying against a tree with his back. The tree had stopped his fall, otherwise he'd have gone down at least 30 yards.

Quickly, she scanned the area to see if there was a safe way to climb down to Harm, but then if she was down at his side, how would they get back up? Finally, she decided to wait for the lifeguards who had to be up on the top any minute. They had to have a radio to call for help.

Silently, she cursed herself for convincing Harm to go up without the lifeguards, without any gear, no cell phones, nothing. She desperately needed help up here, not only for Harm, but also for Roberta Miller who started to strangely roll her eyes.

"Roberta? Roberta, honey!" Mac called to her and grabbed her by her
shoulders to keep her from falling backwards.

"No, sleep, please!" the girl mumbled.
"No, no, no, don't go to sleep. Keep your eyes open. Listen to me, all right? I want you to talk to me. Sing me your favorite song."

The girl obeyed and began to hum a tune that Mac couldn't identify, but still, she was keeping her conscious. She pulled her on her lap and cradled the girl in her arms. Quickly, she cast her eyes down to Harm who still seemed to be unconscious. Was he even alive at all?

From far, Mac could hear two voices. Not knowing what else to do, she screamed for help as loud as she could before she broke down over little Roberta Miller.






2325 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Santa Barbara General Hospital
Santa Barbara, CA


When Mac opened her eyes, they first thing she focused on was a flashlight someone was pointing at her eyes. She squeezed them close, and moaned as she turned her head away.

"Where am I?" she asked wearily.

"You are in the emergency room of Santa Barbara General Hospital. You were admitted 5 minutes ago." a voice next to her explained.

"Harm? Where's Harm?" she cried and tried to sit up, but was immediately pushed back by the woman next to her.

Mac finally focused on her.

"Who are you? And where's Harm?"

"I am Doctor Tessa Giraud. Is Harm your husband?"

"No, my... partner." Mac stammered. "He was out there with me on the hiking trail. There was also a girl with us. Where is she?"

"They were brought in with you. The girl is in a room just across the hallway and is being checked out at the moment."

"And Harm?"

Tessa Giraud shook her head, "I can't tell you anything about him, I am sorry. Why don't we first concentrate on you and then I will see what I can find out about him."

"No!" Mac screamed. "I want to know how he is, please! If you don't want to help me, I will just go on my own."

Again, Mac tried to sit up, but immediately knew it was the wrong decision when a wave of nausea washed over her. She quickly lay back.

"Ma'am, I know you are concerned about your partner, and I promise I will ask about his condition, but first I have to take care of you. You didn't have an ID with you, so I'd be pleased if you at least could tell me your name."

"Lt. Col. Sarah Mackenzie, USMC."

"Okay, Colonel. Much better. Now I know how to address you." The doctor looked up from checking her blood pressure. "You have a very low blood pressure. When was the last time you ate something?"

"Dinner last night." Mac responded, already getting annoyed.

"No breakfast or lunch?"

"No, breakfast didn't agree with me and we didn't have time for lunch. Can I go now?"

"No, not until I found out what is wrong with you. Any nausea?"

"Yeah, but that's..." Mac stopped midsentence and watched Tessa Giraud reach for an injection on the table behind her. "What are you doing there?"

"Relax, Colonel. It's just a simple injection. It will help your low blood pressure."

"No, no, you will not give me that."

Mac shot up like lightning. However, this was not a clever idea. The nausea came back to her, and she didn't even have time to reach for the basin before she became sick. She was so embarrassed when she
saw that she had fully aimed at Dr. Giraud's shoes.

"I am so sorry for that." she stammered, slowly recovering from the wave of nausea.

"It's all right. Happens to me all the time."

Tessa Giraud waved for one of the orderlies to get a mop to clean up the mess. Then she sat down next to Mac.

"Now, Colonel, as far as I can tell you didn't take very good care of you and your blind passenger, did you?"

"How did you know?"

"Just a guess. Let's get you something to eat in the cafeteria and a lot to drink. I think that will be the best medicine for you. And then I will ask for your partner, Harm, wasn't that is name?"

Mac nodded, "Cmdr. Harmon Rabb Jr, USN."

"Oh, a Navy Commander." Tessa chuckled as she walked Mac out of the room. "How did you end up with him as your partner?"

"We are both working for the Judge Advocate General in Washington DC. We are currently investigating a case down at Miramar MCAS."

They shortly stopped at the front desk.

"Colonel, why don't you go ahead to the cafeteria and I will see what I can find out about your partner."

"Thank you, doctor."

With a smile, Mac turned to her right and followed the signs that showed her the way to the cafeteria.






2345 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital
Santa Barbara, CA


Mac looked up from her late lunch when she saw Dr. Giraud walking up to her.

"I have good news and bad news for you. Which one do you want to hear first?" she asked and sat down on a chair opposite of Mac.

"The bad news please."

"The girl who came in with you, she just slipped into a coma. They brought her up to the ICU. Her father is with her now, he arrived a couple of minutes ago. I didn't know it were her two brothers that were admitted earlier today. There's hope though that all three will pull out of their coma once the medication they were given is out of their system."

"And the good news?"

"Your partner is harassing all orderlies up in x-ray cuz he wants to leave the hospital immediately."

Mac smiled, "Yeah, that's him. He hates hospital. The last time he was admitted, the hospital got captured by terrorist. So I take it, he's not very bad?"

"From what I hear, no. He has a sprained ankle, two cracked ribs, a dislocated shoulder, a lot of bruises and a light concussion. He's gonna have a hell of a headache for a couple of days and probably will feel sore, but considering the fall he took, he's doing absolutely fine. They want to keep him over night though."

"Over night? I don't think he's going to agree to that."

"I don't think he has any other choice. He doesn't happen to have family in this area, does he? I could recommend to have him discharged into their care."

"His mother lives about 3 hours south, in La Jolla. I don't think he wants to scare her. Why can't you discharge him into my care?"

"We can only discharge him into his family's care if at all, I am sorry. Hospital policy. We are not even allowed to discharge him into his own care like other hospitals do if the patient signs the right papers."

Tessa Giraud quickly studied Mac's expression before she asked, "You don't happen to be family, do you?"

"That's a little complicated. If you want to know if we are married, no, we are not. If we are living together, I have to say no to that as well. But we love each other, and he's my baby's father. Is that enough to qualify as family?"

Tessa Giraud smiled warmly at Mac, "When you are finished, I can take you up so you can see him. And maybe I can pull some strings."

"Thanks."






2357 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital
Santa Barbara, CA


"Where are my clothes?" Harm asked no one in particular as he was the only person in the room and hopped around in the small room, trying to hold the gown he was given together behind his back.

"Nice view, Sailor." Mac teased him as she stepped into the room.

"Very funny. I think they stole my clothes, Mac."

"Sit down, please?"

Harm sighed, but eventually sat down on the bed in the room. His arm was in a sling, his ankle and chest bandaged.

"How do you feel?"

"Run over by a truck. I was worried about you though. You were unconscious during the ride here, and nobody wanted to tell me anything."

"I am fine. We are both fine. My body just told me that going somewhere without breakfast and lunch certainly wasn't a very good idea when you are pregnant."

"Could have told you."

Mac gave Harm a look of 'don't go there' before she added a smile to it.

"If we are in luck, you'll be out of here in about 20 minutes."

"You're the greatest!"

Harm placed a quick peck on Mac's lips and didn't even see that Dr. Tessa Giraud had entered the room. She was holding Harm's clothes in one hand and his chart in the other, and smiled when she saw those two.

"I recommend you take better care of your girlfriend and little one from now on, Commander." she teased and placed the clothes on an empty chair next to the bed.

"Oh yeah, that I definitely will do." Harm replied, smiling at Mac.

"Now, if you two would sign these release papers, you are ready to go. There are a couple of recommendations I have to make though."

Harm reached for the chart in Tessa's hands as he said, "Go ahead, we'll listen."

"First, Colonel, take it easy for the next couple of days, eat regularly and drink a lot more than you are used to. You can become dehydrated from vomiting real easy. Your baby will thank you for it."

Mac just nodded and then signed the paper Harm was handing her to acknowledge that he was released into her care. Then she handed it back to Tessa.

"Commander, you'll be having a headache for a couple of days, so there will be no driving for you for the next 7 days. Not that you can do it with your shoulder anyway, but I thought I would mention it. No heavy work either, no lifting of heavy boxes or anything. You should be back to normal in 2 to 3 weeks. Until then, you will take it easy as well, okay?"

"Understood completely, ma'am."

"Good. Before you leave, pick up your prescriptions at the desk. Painkillers for you, Commander, a couple of vitamins for you, Colonel. And if morning sickness gets worse and you can't seem to keep anything down, try gingerale and saltines first thing in the morning to settle down your stomach. It worked for me."

Tessa Giraud said her goodbyes and left the room. Mac immediately reached for Harm's shirt on top of the stack of clothes and helped him getting dressed.

"Have you heard that Commander Miller arrived some time ago? He's on the 3rd floor in the ICU with the kids. Sadly, they all slipped into a coma."

"Will they pull out of it?"

"Most likely once the medication their mother gave them is out of their system. At least they are safe now."

"Do you know what happened to her?"

Mac silently shook her head and helped Harm slide his injured arm through the sleeve of his sweatshirt without causing too much pain.

"Sarah?"

Mac looked up at Harm at the sound of her name.

"Life takes its turns, for the good or for the bad, that's what people call the mystery of life. You will never know where it will take you, you will never know what will happen. For Cmdr. Miller, life made a turn for the bad a couple of days ago, but they are on track again. Our lives have made turns for the bad as well, but as long as we try to stay on track we will be fine."

"What are you trying to tell me, Harm?"

"That I love you, Sarah, that nothing can stop that. If there are things you are scared off, I want you to tell me. If there is anything in your life you doubt, I want us to talk about it. I know that happily ever after certainly does not exist, for no one in this world, but I want us to be nearly happily ever after. Do I make any sense here?"

"No, but I'll blame that to your injured head." Mac chuckled.

"Then let me rephrase it, counselor." Harm grinned at her. "You will tell me if anything is wrong with you, won't you? I don't want to hear it from others if something is wrong, I want you to come to me and confide in me, all right? And I don't want to keep asking and asking before you finally tell me. Think you can do that?"

"Only if you promise me that your only obsession from now on will be me and our child."

"That will be an easy promise to make."

Mac carefully rested her hands on Harm's taped chest as she leaned in to meet him in a kiss halfway.





0012 ZULU
Wednesday, December 19th
Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital
Santa Barbara, CA


Harm and Mac stood in from of Peds Intensive Care waiting for Cmdr. Miller. They were told by a nurse that since they were no family, they were not allowed in the ICU, so they had asked her to inform Cmdr. Miller about their presence.

They had also learned that Jillian Miller had overdosed on a stronger sedative than the one she had given her kids. By the time Harm and Mac found her, she already had to be dead for almost an hour. They could
only speculate why she had used two different medications, but given her medical knowledge, they considered that she never actually wanted to kill her children.

Cmdr. Miller smiled at them as he left the ICU. He extended his hand in Harm's direction. With a nod, he took it.

"I can't say in words how much I owe you for finding my children."

"Just knowing that they will be all right is enough for us." Harm replied.

"They will. Kieran woke up a couple of minutes ago. It's a good sign."

"We are sorry about your wife, Commander." Mac uttered.

Cmdr. Miller sighed deeply, "I believe she is in a better place now. I just wished she would have told me what was going on with her. Maybe I could have helped her. Then I wouldn't be here sitting at my children's bedside, and you wouldn't have been hurt. I hope nothing is broken?"

"No," Harm shook his head, "just a dislocated shoulder. Your little girl nearly feel off a cliff. When I tried to grab her, I took the fall instead of her."

"I know you two went to the extreme to find my children, and I am very grateful for that. I don't think they would be alive if it wasn't for you. If there is anything I can do for you, anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask."

"Please keep us updated about how your children are doing. That is all we are asking for." Mac said with a comforting tone in her voice.

"That I will do, Colonel."

"What is going to happen to Lt. Tompkins once you get back to San Diego?".

Cmdr. Miller slightly shrugged his shoulders, "I honestly have no idea, Commander. She loves me and my children, I know that, but how can I possibly ask her to marry me and live with me and my children after everything that happened?"

"Believe me, Commander, she will be more than thrilled to become your wife and a surrogate mother to your children."

"Is this a woman's intuition, Colonel?" Cmdr. Miller chuckled.

"Yeah, you may say that." Mac replied, grinning. "Our CO will personally take care of Lt. Tompkins' transfer to Northern Island NAS. I really hope everything will work out for the best for you and your family."

Cmdr. Miller just nodded his appreciation.

"We will head back to San Diego tonight and stay until Sunday, so if there is anything we can do for you, please give us a call. You have our numbers."

"You two did so much already that I can't accept this offer. But I will inform you about the children's progress, and if they can be transferred back to San Diego before Sunday, I want you to come and visit them. They should know those two people who saved their lives. If you excuse me now, I need to get back inside."

The three said their goodbyes. Harm and Mac watched after Cmdr. Miller until the doors behind him closed completely. They didn't say a word, they knew each other's feeling as they started to walk down the corridor towards the elevator.

Harm placed his good arm around Mac's waist, pulling her closer to him as they walked. Mac instinctively placed her hand on top of his, squeezing it lightly.

"No matter how old they are, you will never stop worrying about them, will you?" Mac asked and shortly turned to look over at Harm.

"No, I don't think so. Children are the most precious thing life can give you - love can give you."

"Do you think we will be good parents to our children?"

"As long as we love them, yes, I think we will. Love is the base of everything in life. Without love, we wouldn't be here together, and without love, we wouldn't be expecting life's greatest gift. That's..."

"... the mystery of life." Mac finished for him before they kissed tenderly.