Obsessed 8: Cracking the Code
By: slick1969
Summary: Harm gets help from a friend.
Rating: IM15 (Click here for the AO version)
Disclaimer: See Part 1.
Spoilers: Anything through Season 10 is fair game.
Saturday Morning
Mac's Apartment
Harm woke to the smell of frying bacon. He got out of bed and padded towards the kitchen. Mac was cooking breakfast.
"Shoo!" She waved her hands at him. "I'm trying to treat you to breakfast in bed. That doesn't work if you're sitting at the kitchen table." She handed him a steaming coffee mug and pushed him on his way. Bemused, he obeyed.
Ten minutes later, she walked in the bedroom carrying a tray. "Breakfast ... is served," and she placed the tray on the bed with a flourish before flopping down next to him.
"Here, try these." She snapped off some grapes and fed them to him one by one. He returned the favor with some slices of cantaloupe, wiping the juices that dribbled down her chin with his finger, then licking it sensuously.
The rest of breakfast was soon forgotten as Harm pulled her into an embrace and the tray slid onto the floor.
Two hours later, Harm and Mac were on their way to the Roberts' house. Mac pulled into a McDonald's. "Since we didn't finish breakfast, I figured we might want to get an early lunch," she explained, blushing a little as she did so.
Harm grinned back at her. "Besides, we'll need to keep our energy up for tonight."
She blushed again.
Saturday Afternoon
The Roberts' House
"Of course I can and will help you, Commander, Colonel," Bud told them. "Where's the petty officer's computer?"
"At her apartment. Should we bring it here?" Mac asked. Just then, Jimmy started crying and AJ ran in, shouting, "I didn't do it!"
Bud sighed. "Let's go there - we'll probably get more done." He walked into the kitchen and told his wife where he was headed and why. She rolled her eyes but nodded. Bud had told Harriet how much the petty officer's suicide had affected Harm, and if he could do something to help resolve the mystery, she wanted him to do it.
Bud picked up his laptop and the keys to the car. He followed Harm and Mac to the apartment.
He connected his laptop to Kelly Simpson's computer and began running several programs. He looked up at Harm, who was leaning over his shoulder watching intently. "Sir? I will get the IP information, but it could take some time. And then once I have that information, we'll have to match the account to a name."
"And breathing down his neck is not going to help any," Mac said drily. Harm took the hint and sat down at the kitchen table. He began reviewing printouts of the email correspondence they had printed from her computer.
"Whoever this Greg guy is, he's a master manipulator." Harm picked up a piece of paper. "He kept urging her down this road, making her think her life would be so much better if she just stopped taking her medication."
"I wonder if her doctor had a hint of what Petty Officer Simpson was planning," Mac mused.
"You can ask him if you like," Harm told her, "I got nowhere with him yesterday."
"Commander, while the trace programs are running, I can also download any new email that has come to the petty officer's account." He shrugged. "You never know, you might get some additional information."
"That would be great. Thanks, Bud."
"Look at this!" Bud exclaimed.
Harm and Mac hurried over to look at the monitor. Starting with last Sunday, there were no less than twenty emails from "BeFree". And the last one was from Thursday night.
They quickly looked through them onscreen. They started out as emails "just checking in" but as they went through the week, the messages became more and more worried.
The final email read:
From: BeFree@dcnet.com
To: KSimpson@dcnet.com
Date: 22:27, Thursday, March 10, 2005
Subject: What's Up?
Kelly,
Where are you? Is everything okay?
Remember, I'm here for you - if you need someone to talk to or for any reason at all.
If I don't hear anything by tomorrow, I'm coming over. I've got to make sure you're all right.
Greg
"Well, he didn't come by," Mac commented. "We were here last night and nothing appears to have been disturbed between then and now."
"So something scared him off," Harm said. "And how did he know her address? None of the emails mention anything about where she lived."
"Hopefully, finding out who this guy is will answer that question, sir." Bud looked at his laptop screen. "I've got an IP address and account. Now we just need a name to go with it."
"Good job, Bud." Harm squeezed his shoulder before heading back to the kitchen area to continue reading and waiting.
About twenty minutes passed, then Bud leaned back in the chair. "I've got it," he told them. "And you're not going to believe it."
Harm sprung up from the table and looked at the laptop display. "That bastard," he said, shaking his head.
Mac peered over Harm's shoulder and said, "No wonder he didn't want to talk to you, Harm."
The display read:
