Sins of the Father

7

A/N Thanks again for all your support readers, this was a difficult chapter to write. There are a few scenes of violence in this chapter that may be a little uncomfortable, but it probably is about what you would see watching Law and Order SVU.

Anyway, read on!

Earlier Friday:

In a quiet corner of a coffee shop, Mac sighed and closed her eyes. The report would have to wait. Her mind kept leaping back to the day she buried her father.

The California sun beat down on her heavy Marine uniform, but Sarah felt only chills as she listened to Father Genero's words. There was no one else in the Orchard, save the larks.

"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust..." The priest intoned, but she did not hear him. When the small casket was lowered into the ground and the final words spoken; Sarah Mackenzie whispered to the grave, "I forgive you." Her father's alcoholism, his jealous rages, his abuse. She let it all go...

Could she forgive rape? Mac struggled to keep the doors of her mind open. Slowly, she realized that it wasn't really about her. Joe Mackenzie hadn't raped her, he hadn't raped her mother. She had to admit, it was entirely possible that he had raped Olivia's mother. No, it wasn't about her at all. It was about Olivia.

She took a long sip of her coffee and closed her laptop. Her hand settled on her blackberry. Perhaps she should call? Typing the numbers in, she hesitated on the talk key. What would she say? It was nearing 19:30 hours. Would it be too late? Almost subconsciously her thumb pressed the end key. Scrolling down her contacts to Harm's number, she pressed the talk key.

"Hello?" Harm's voice sounded distant. There was a sizzling sound in the background.

"Hey." Mac could almost smell his cooking through the phone.

"Mac, how's it going? Back from New York?" His voice was chipper with a slight shade of concern in it

"I'm still in New York, Harm, my flight was delayed."

"Yeah, its a helluva storm down here, I wouldn't even fly in this weather."

"Not like you haven't done that before." Mac commented.

"That wasn't entirely my fault," he scoffed.

"Whatever you say." Mac sipped her coffee. "Do you have a few minutes? I'd like to talk about the rape case."

"Uh, actually, I'm a little tied up right now," Pots and pans banged in the background. "Renee's over for dinner tonight."

"Oh." Mac mentally slapped her forehead. Of course he was with Renee' it was a Friday night. "Never mind then, I'll uh, call you tomorrow."

"Are you sure?" Harm's voice was overly laden with concern, like he could sense there was something more she wanted to discuss.

"Yeah, don't worry about it," Forcing a smile, Mac added, "We'll go for lunch."

"Okay, I'll catch up with you later."

"Bye, Harm" The last drop of her coffee slid down her throat and left an acerbic taste on her tongue. Noticing the faint streaks of rain on the window, Mac sighed with relief. The rain had stopped, maybe she would be getting out of this God forsaken city sooner than she thought.

She stood up, gathering the contents of her briefcase and storing them away. It had grown remarkably quiet in the last couple hours. Mac stole a glance around the small cafe' and noticed she was alone, except for another man, who was reading the newspaper. Cold air assaulted her senses as she stepped out into the wind. Goosebumps prickled up her spine and she wished that she had thought to wear her overcoat, but it was in her car. Unlocking the door, she swung it open. Suddenly, her head snapped back and slammed forward, an explosion of pain sliced through her skull and then darkness enveloped her.