Sins of the Father

10

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Picks up right where we left off...

Mac's apartment

Washington D.C

8:30pm

"This is a sick joke." Mac said aloud as she stared at the computer. Someone had set this up. If she ever found out who, she would sue them for emotional damages. Mac sat down at the computer and adjusted the screensaver settings. Satisfied, she finished her report and e-mailed it to the admiral, but she couldn't get rid of a nagging sense of unease. Was he really dead?

Her fingers drummed on the desk with impatience. John Aberdeen was dead, right? Olivia had shown her a picture, Mac had identified him, the report had confirmed it. The bastard was just sadistic, he had access to her phone and laptop, it wouldn't be hard to figure out how to program her screensaver. So, before he shot himself, he wanted to make sure he won. The pyschology was simple, wasn't it?

Still, Mac needed proof that he was dead. Unfortunately, proof was 300 miles away.

A knock sounded at her door. Mac checked the peephole. If it was Harm, she would tell him to go away. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw who it was. "Harriet, what are you doing here?" She opened the door and gestured for her to come in.

"Well you know how it is," Harriet said cheerfully. The prim Lieutenant took a few steps in, and Mac closed the door behind her. "Bud wanted to watch Star Trek the Wrath of Khan, and the only place that rents it is three blocks from your apartment. Since I was in the neighborhood I thought I'd check in on you, see if you needed anything." She sighed and looked around, as if she wanted to find a task that she could do.

Mac raised an eyebrow. This was a pleasant but unexpected surprise. Harriet often found little ways to take care of her coworkers, and Mac was thankful that she was here. But she was also a really bad liar. "Harriet, the only video store near my apartment is an 'adult' video store."

Harriet's fair skin turned red, "Well, we were feeling a little frisky,-"

"Save it lieutenant. Harm sent you," Mac said. The walls started to come up again. Why did Harm have to do this? It infuriated her to no end. What happened, was none of his business. What good would talking about it do? So he could see her vulnerable? She could hardly process it in her own mind, much less confess it to a man she, well... loved. Mac could feel the blood boiling under her skin... He would feel sorry for her, and the tension between her and him and Renee' would escalate. She didn't want him to rescue her. "He called here three times in an hour," she said, trying to keep her tone even. "I just didn't want to talk to him."

"Maybe if you told him what was going on? How you're feeling?" Harriet asked timidly.

"Nothing is going on and I'm feeling fine thank you."

The petite blonde reached for Mac's arm. "Let's just sit down for a minute." Somehow, Harriet's mothering got the best of her and Mac obliged, easing slowly onto the couch. She avoided eye contact, instead twisting the ring on her finger. It seemed looser than before, and Mac realised that she hadn't eaten a full meal since her attack.

"Did the man- the carjacker, did he..." Harriet swallowed, "Were you sexually assaulted?"

It was inevitable that she would ask that. But Harriet was a trustworthy friend, and Mac knew that someone had to know the truth. She kneaded the palm of her bandaged hand with her thumb. "He... um, he tried to rape me." Mac took a breath, "But I got away."

"Okay." Harriet said, "Okay, see now, you said it. Wasn't that a relief?"

"You don't get it," her ribs ached, reliving the event. "This never should have happened, I let my guard down and my emotions got the best of me." Her voice shivered with her own anger. "I barely escaped with my life, and now I'm scared to even go to my car. I hate the rain, I hate the park. God, the smell of wet grass makes me sick to my stomach."