Undercover - Chapter 13 and Epilogue

from chapter 12

Jamie sists down in Mac's car and passes through the gate without trouble. The car vanishes into the night

*******************

Chapter 13

0724 local

Tuesday

JAG HQ

Admiral Chegwidden enters the building, steps into the elevator and goes up to the floor that houses his team's offices. Like every morning, he's the first to enter the bullpen. But it's the first time he finds one of his lawyers tied to a chair, in her underwear. Her first move is to the phone to call for an ambulance. Then he unties Mac and puts her on the floor. He checks her pulse, strong and slow and notices the big bump on her head. Mac starts to stir but doesn't wake up. At that moment, the admiral notices the basket full of paper, ink and glue.

*******************

0735 local

Tuesday

Harm's appartment

The ring of the phone wakes Harm up. He turns in his bed, the mind clouded by the sleeping pill. He takes a look at his clock and sits on the edge of his bed.

Harm – Hello ?

Admiral – Commander Rabb ? Where the hell are you ? Have you seen what time it is ?

Harm – I just woke up, Sir.

Admiral – Did you see Mac last night ?

Harm – No, I saw her last week just before she left for Aurora. Why do you ask Sir ?

Admiral – I found her this morning cuffed to a chair with a bump on the head. Bring your six right now.

Harm – Aye Aye, Sir.

Harm hangs up and rubs his eyes, trying to wipe out the remanants of sleep from his brain. After a cold shower, his ideas are somewhat in place ans he leaves for JAG HQ. Or he tries, his car is not in his parking space. He swears and calls a cab.

*******************

0812 local

Tuesday

JAG HQ

Harm is out of breath when he enters the bullpen. He sees everyone rather unnerved and shocked by what happened. Bud points to the admiral's office. Tiner shows him in.

Admiral – The hospital just called, Mac is awake.

Harm – Oh ! Thank God !

Admiral – But what she's saying doesn't make sense. She swears Commander Bond did that to her. I checked with the Marines at the gate. They say the Colonel arrived at 2315 and left at 2350 but they never saw Commander Bond. Can you explain that to me?

Harm – I don't understand either. I haven't seen Jamie... hum... Commander Bond this morning. Have you tried her cell ?

Admiral – Yes, and it's been disconnected.

Harm is flabbergasted.

Harm – It's getting more and more incomprehensible.

Admiral – And this is what I found near Mac.

The admiral tends the basket to Harm, who jumps and runs to his office. He comes back after just a minute.

Harm – All the paperwork of my FBI mission is missing.

Admiral – Mac said she saw Commander Bond destroy the documents herself but she didn't say why.

Harm – That would have been useful.

Admiral – Mac also said the Commander would not have hesitated to hurt her. Or even kill her.

Harm is shocked, unable to react. A supposed FBI Agent had threatened to harm and kill her partner and friend ?

Harm – Let's take it back from the beginning. Last night Commander Bond enters this office without being seen. She starts destroying my files on the case we're working on. A case supervised by the FBI. Mac surprises her, gets cuffed and knocked out. And you found her this morning. And what do the FBI say ?

Admiral – They say Agent Bond's real name is Susan Brown and that she disappeared without a trace. The Marines at the gate were the last to see her, and they mistook her for Mac.she was wearing her uniform and driving her car. She even wished them good night.

The phone rings.

Admiral – Chegwidden ! Ah... well... so noted, thank you.

He hangs up.

Admiral – The police just found Mac's car ten clicks from here in an alley, keys on the ignition. But no trace of this Susan Brown.

Harm - What I don't understand is why she acted that way. Hey, there are hidden micros in my office, the feds must have the recordings !

The admiral shakes the basket full of glue and stuff. They hear a rattling.

Admiral – I'm guessing she unplugged them.

Harm – I don't get it... Unless...

Admiral – Unless ?

Harm – Unless she's part of the op we were trying to take down.

Admiral – What op ?

Harm – I guess I can tell you now. We were following an unknown organisation who was stealing military equipment and secrets starting about two years ago. I had just found out who was behing the thefts, but I was still missing the head of the whole operation. Maybe she's it. But now, with all the files destroyed, it's going to be hard to prove anything.

The intercom rings.

Tiner – Admiral ?

Admiral – Yes Tiner ?

Tiner – Two FBI agents are here.

Admiral – Show them in.

The door opens and Harm recognises the agents he'd seen on Jamie's pictures.

Harm – Sean and Moore.

Becker – Sort of. We're Agents Becker and Tollan. We are looking for Agent Brown.

Harm and the Admiral look at each other.

Admiral – She injured one of my officers and destroyed evidence. If you don't find her, we will.

Becker and Tollan exchange a look.

Admiral – Gentlemen ?

Tollan – Commander Rabb, can we talk in private ?

Harm – I disclosed everything to Admiral Chegwidden. After Commander Bond, I mean Agent Brown disappeared, and the discovery of my partner, cuffed and injured, I thought he deserved to know.

Admiral – Take a seat, gentlemen.

Tollan – We just got the last piece of the puzzle. Yesterday afternoon, you found the name of the Number two in the organisation.

Harm – Melbourne.

Tollan – Yes. We spent the night following his footsteps. As a kid, he was in trouble with the law a lot. Until his mom got him into the GrandPa association where retired vets take care of... difficult teens. Susan Brown, whose name at the time was Jessie Vilandro, was also in the same association.

Becker – There, they met Mitchell Jones, a VietNam vet who became a private pilot. He's a very dangerous man, with no morals. He gave them pilot and sniper training, got Melbourne in the Navy and the SEALs, and her into the FBI.

Tollan – By the way, your partner was lucky, if Brown had wanted her dead, she wouldn't be here anymore. But she doesn't like to kill.

Becker - When Melbourne entered the Navy, Jones started to put his pawns into place and two years ago he asked him to retire and help with his organisation. Brown stayed behind in the FBI to monitor things.

Tollan - When we started to investigate, she somehow got in with us. Jones had given her a false identity that was so good that nobody saw through it.

Harm – And now ? The file is gone, we don't have any proofs anymore.

Becker – Actually, every night I entered this office to copy all new materials. Our file is complete, and FBI agents are arresting everyone involved as we speak.

Admiral – Well, that's a relief.

Tollan – We couldn't have done it without Commander Rabb.

Becker's phone rings.

Becker – Agent Becker... Yes ? ... Oh fucking shit !

He hangs up.

Becker – Jones had chartered a plane to fly him, Melbourne and Brown to Paraguay last night. Texas Rangers just found its remains outside of Austin. No survivor.

Harm – Oh my God.

Tollan – Well, it's gonna spare some taxpayers money.

Becker – Case is closed for good now. Commander Rabb, your country thanks you. If you ever get out of the Navy, the FBI has a spot for you.

Harm shakes his head.

Harm – Jamie, I mean... whatever her name was, she told me the same thing.

Becker – She had a habit of saying the right thing at the right time.

*******************

Epilogue

1632 local

Bethesda Naval Hospital

Mac's room

Harm knocks at the door.

Mac – Enter !

Mac is lying in bed, a white bandage over her head. She smiles.

Mac – Harm ! Please tell the doctors I'm good enough to go back home ?

Harm – What did the doctors say ?

Mac – That I have a small concussion and I need to stay for the night just in case. But I feel all right ! I want to go home, get Jingo back and read a good book !

Harm – You can do that tomorrow. In the meantime, I have something for you.

Harm shows her the bouquet he was holding behind his back.

Mac – Oh, it's beautiful ! Thank you Harm.

Harm – It's for you if you promise to stay here tonight.

Mac – All right.

Harm takes a seat and tells Mac all the story. Dinner is served and Harm is about to leave.

Mac – Harm, wait. Can you stay until I flall asleep ?

Harm – Of course.

He pulls the chair closer to the bed and takes Mac's hand into his. Once she's asleep, he takes it to his lips. He puts a kiss on its back and rubs it gently. Mac smiles in her sleep.

Harm – She was right about that too...

THE END