A Christmas Bundle - Part 1
Author: Ava
E-mail: mmmThatAJ@yahoo.com
Rating: PG-13Summary: Based on "Bachelor Mother" and "Bundle of Joy", this story finds Mac with a foundling baby; confusion ensues about its parentage!
Author's comments: A few assumptions here, if you please: 1) This story takes place during the Christmas season of 2004, 2) Consider that nothing so far this season has happened, well, except that Mac made it back from South America and dated Webb seriously for a while, 3) AJ came to his senses and didn't marry Meredith and she is no longer in his life, and 4) Mac is now a bird Colonel. Characters' speaking parts are in double quotes ("text"); characters' thoughts are in single quotes ('text').
Disclaimer: JAG and all its characters belong to Belisarius Productions, Paramount, CBS, Viacom, and probably endless others. "Bachelor Mother" was produced in 1939 and "Bundle of Joy" in 1956; both currently belong to Turner Broadcasting and who knows who else. They're certainly not mine, more's the pity. I've used quite a bit of the dialog from the movies, too, you'll notice. That doesn't belong to me either. I'm just borrowing it all for a little fun.
Tuesday, 21 December 2004
0945 EST
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
Colonel Sarah MacKenzie stood in front of the members and delivered her closing argument. She knew she'd lost the case, but then, she was actually glad... because she knew her client was guilty. It had been hard for her to defend a man so vile. But she'd done it, and done it to the best of her ability. No one could question that, she knew. And she had tried to convince him not to take the stand. But he'd insisted, fool that he was. And when Lieutenant Bud Roberts stepped forward to cross examine him? He fell right into Bud's trap and confessed his guilt.
Mac finished her argument and the members were excused to decide their verdict. The judge called a recess until 1600 that afternoon. He was that sure the members would have a decision today.
Mac and Bud headed back to the JAG bullpen. Mac grinned, "You're quite a lawyer now, Bud."
He smiled, "Thank you, Ma'am. I learned from the best."
Mac nodded, "Yeah, well... speaking of, have you heard from him lately?"
The Marine guard held the heavy door open for them to enter, but Bud stopped in the doorway. "I meant you, Colonel."
Mac turned around, surprise evident on her face. "What?"
"I meant you," he repeated. Mac looked disbelievingly at him. "Okay, okay... I meant both of you. But certainly not just Captain Rabb. I learned as much from you as I did him... probably more, Ma'am."
Mac smiled. "Thank you, Bud."
He grinned, "And yes, Ma'am. I heard from him yesterday." At her interested look, he continued, "He loves Italy, and he's very happy in charge of the JAG Europe offices."
Mac nodded, "Good, I'm glad he's happy. He was rather... unsettled... for a while here."
"Mostly after you left for Okinawa last year, Ma'am," Lieutenant Harriett Sims offered, hearing the conversation with her husband and her best friend. "He said you two grew apart while you were in South America. He seemed to think Mr. Webb was the root of the problem."
"Harm thought Clay was the root of all problems," Mac shook her head. "Clay had nothing to do with the..." Mac chose her word carefully, "...rift between Harm and me. Harm caused that himself just before I left."
"Maybe if the Admiral hadn't sent you off to Japan, you and Harm could have worked things out," suggested Harriett.
"The Admiral can't take personal problems into consideration when he's making assignments, Harriett. You know that," her husband reminded her.
"He's always very considerate of us, Bud. He always has been."
Mac grinned, "Ah, yes! But there's the rub. You and Bud are married. Harm and I aren't, thank God!" She laughed at Harriett's shocked expression and headed to her office.
No sooner had she set her briefcase on her desk, than Petty Officer Jennifer Coates knocked on her doorframe. "Excuse me, Colonel. The Admiral wants to see you."
"Be right there," Mac replied. she opened her case and pulled out a file that she knew the Admiral would ask her about. She hadn't quite finished working on it; she needed about two hours more. 'Well, he'll either give it to me... or he'll really give it to me for not being ready,' she sighed heavily.
Mac knocked on the Admiral's door, and at his bellowed, "Enter!", she opened the door and stepped inside.
She snapped to attention stance and said, "Colonel MacKenzie reporting as ordered, Sir."
Admiral AJ Chegwidden looked up and frowned. "At ease. Mac, I've told you before, you don't have to be quite so formal now. You're a bird Colonel, for goodness sake. Talk to me like a person when you walk into my office... not a god."
Mac smirked, "Sorry, Sir. Old habits die hard."
AJ chuckled as he walked around his desk. He motioned to one of the red leather chairs, "Have a seat, Mac." She did, and he sat in the one next to her. "Are you happy here, Mac? Since your return from Japan, I mean?"
Mac looked surprised. "Happy, Sir?"
AJ explained, "I know things were quite different when you got back. Rabb's gone, Turner's gone... hell, even Tiner's gone. We've got a couple of new judges on the bench..."
"The military is a changing place, Sir. One should never become too accustomed to an assignment or personnel," Mac replied.
"How many times have I had to tell people that over the years?" he mused aloud. "Okay, let me just come right out and ask you. Mac, did you request a transfer?"
Mac's eyes opened wide in surprise and her jaw fell open. "A transfer?" she gulped then shook her head. "No, I didn't. I would never circumvent you in something like that anyway. You'd be the first to know if I wanted out."
AJ swore under his breath. He rose and walked over to the fireplace, leaning on the mantle. "I should have known I couldn't keep you here for long. Not after the job you did in Okinawa. Hell, the SecNav and CMC haven't stopped praising your work over there."
"I didn't do that much, Sir. The people who reported to me did most everything."
"Don't sell yourself short, Mac. You were the one who got the people to do the work. No one else could. Which is, I assume, the reason the CMC wants you on his staff."
"General Stephenson, Sir?"
"He has plans for you, I believe," he said ominously. "He wants you in his office tomorrow morning at 8 sharp."
"Where am I going this time, do you know?"
"Iraq."
Tuesday, 21 December 2004
1230 EST
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VirginiaAfter Mac's meeting with the Admiral, she decided to call the CMC's office and find out all she could about her new assignment. But all she could get his Corporal to say was that she was going to Iraq on Thursday and she'd be there for an extended period. He didn't know how long; he didn't know what she'd be doing; he didn't even know if she'd be there in a legal capacity.
But one thing she did understand: she was going to a war zone.
Mac decided to take a lunch break. She didn't often go out of the office for lunch; usually she merely ate in the cafeteria or brought her lunch from home and ate at her desk. But today, she felt the need to get out for some fresh air. So she walked out of the building, got in her car, and took a chance on lowering the convertible top. It was a cool day, but she needed to feel the wind in her face.
She found herself on Arlington Boulevard and decided to turn off the main road. She turned down Filmore Street and spied a van pulling out of a parking spot. She whipped her little car right in behind him. She climbed out and started walking up the sidewalk, glancing in the windows as she passed the small businesses. She noticed a shabbily-dressed woman hurrying down the steps of the next building and running down the sidewalk. Mac's brain registered trouble instantly.
As she reached the next building, she heard a small cry. She looked around and saw a rust-colored blanket rolled into a bundle resting on the top step of the building. "What on earth?" Seeing the bundle move, Mac rushed forward and scooped it up in her arms just as it would have rolled off and fallen down the steps. Mac knew that the woman she'd seen running away must have left the baby. "You poor little thing," she cooed as the door opened.
"Won't you come inside?" a female voice said from above her.
Mac stood with the baby cradled in her arms and smiled. "Thank you," and she followed the woman inside... inside the Atkins Foundling Home.
When they reached the main office, a young man asked, "Your name, please?"
Mac was so entranced with the baby, she replied, "Sarah MacKenzie." She cooed to the baby, who gurgled in response.
The man wrote her name on an index card. Seeing her uniform, he asked, "You're a Marine, correct?" Mac nodded. "And what's your duty station?"
"JAG Headquarters." Mac tickled the baby's stomach. "You're just a precious little thing, aren't you?" Then she continued, as if she hadn't stopped to speak to the baby. "Until tonight, that is. The Commandant of the Marine Corp just reassigned me to Iraq." Suddenly realizing that these people thought the baby was hers, Mac protested, "Oh, the baby isn't mine. I just found it on the doorstep..."
The people in the room sighed, and the young man spoke tenderly. "Many mothers often tell us the baby isn't theirs. But we've found that it's much better for them to admit..."
"No, no..." Mac interrupted. "This baby is not mine. I'm not even married. It's..." she faltered. "I found it..." she tried again, to no avail.
Hearing a clock chime the hour, Mac realized the time. "Look, I have to get back to work," she said. She looked down at the bundle in her arms. "Bye bye, Sweetie. You are a precious little thing." Then she handed the baby to the woman who invited her inside the building. Mac turned to leave, but the baby started crying.
Mac turned back around and the woman laid the bundle back in Mac's arms. The baby quieted immediately and gurgled at Mac. "Well, I'll be..." Mac smiled. She looked up to see a rather smug expression on the woman's face. "Oh, no... that's not my baby!" She dumped the child into the other woman's arms again and headed out the door.
Another man stepped forward and took the index card from the desk of the younger man. "We just can't have this. What is our nation coming to when our young women are forced to give up their babies so they can be sent abroad to serve our country? No, this can't be," he shook his head. "Well, we know who she works for. And if I'm not mistaken, the Commandant is at the Pentagon, and he's a family man," he added, tapping the index card in the palm of his hand.
Tuesday, 21 December 2004
1600 EST
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VirginiaPetty Officer Coates jumped to her feet as the "Attention on deck!" call sounded through the bullpen. She didn't recognize the man walking toward her, but he was a General.
'Oh my God, a 4-star!' she gulped as the man stopped in front of her desk.
"Chegwidden in?" he barked.
Jen saw his name tag and now knew she was addressing the highest-ranking officer in the Marine Corp. "Yes, Sir, he is. Let me just tell him you're here, Sir."
Jen knocked quickly on the Admiral's door and didn't wait for his answer. She opened it, interrupting his meeting with Lieutenant Roberts. AJ looked annoyed, but Jen didn't even let him speak. "Excuse me, Admiral. General Michael Stephenson is here to see you, Sir."
AJ's eyes opened wide. "Here?" he repeated. Jen nodded. AJ looked at Bud and said, "We'll finish this later, Lieutenant." Bud and Jen walked out of the office, and AJ stood in the doorway. "General? Something we couldn't discuss on the phone?" he asked.
Stephenson nodded and walked past AJ into his office. A smaller man followed... the first time Jen had even noticed him. She closed the door after the Admiral was back inside. The three men took seats by the fireplace and AJ waited for Stephenson to speak.
"Why didn't you tell me MacKenzie has a baby? And why isn't it in her personnel record?" he blurted out.
"A baby?" AJ choked. He shook his head. "She doesn't have a baby."
The smaller man stood and nodded his head vigorously. "Oh, but she does! She tried to leave it with us only this afternoon."
"Us?" AJ queried.
Stephenson sighed and nodded at the little man. "His name is Wade. He's from the orphanage."
"Actually, I'm from the Atkins Foundling Home," the man corrected the General. He turned to AJ. "Your Colonel MacKenzie left a baby with us this afternoon. She told us she worked here until tonight... when the Commandant was sending her to Iraq. I believe that is why she abandoned her baby."
AJ shook his head, "No, that doesn't sound at all like Mac."
"If you could have seen her denying the parentage of her own child... Why, it was... pitiful," Wade intoned.
The General stood and paced back and forth. "AJ, I can't send a mother into a war zone. Certainly not a mother of an infant with no husband at home to take care of the child!"
"Mike, she doesn't have a baby. I would know it!" AJ insisted.
"Our pediatrician puts the child at about 7 months old," Wade informed him with an insistence in his voice.
Stephenson added, "Which would mean she had the baby last spring while she was in Japan. And if you'll recall, AJ, she took several weeks off in May."
"She was on personal leave. She was entitled; she had the time," AJ defended her.
"She also evidently had the need," Stephenson quipped.
AJ didn't mention that it was actually a medical problem she took care of; Mac told him that much by mistake on the phone one day during her leave. She was tired and it just slipped out; she was mortified that she told him, and he'd promised to keep it quiet... not that he knew anything more than she was in the hospital for a day or two. 'Damn, now I know.'
AJ calculated in his mind. A May birth would probably put the conception back in August of 2003. He paused in realization. "Oh my God," he muttered under his breath. Both men raised curious eyes to him.
"AJ?" the General said. "Do you know something?"
AJ sighed heavily. "I guess it is possible," he agreed reluctantly without giving any more detail. He knew that Mac dated Webb fairly regularly during the months that followed their assignment in South America. And Rabb let it slip that he and Mac had finally slept together once in August before she left for Japan.
Involved with both men... and no one saw her again until August 2004 when she came home. And to top it off, when she did come home, she let her old apartment go that she'd held on to the whole year she was away... 'So she could rent a two-bedroom,' he remembered her saying. 'I figured it was just because of her promotion and she could afford it. Never occurred to me that she needed another room... for a nursery!'
AJ felt he had to defend her, though. He just knew she wasn't capable of this. "I still find it difficult to believe that she didn't tell anyone about a baby. And that she would abandon her own child? That's just not like Mac."
Stephenson suggested, "Call her in here, AJ. I want to ask her about this personally."
AJ nodded. He pushed the intercom. "Coates, send the Colonel in," he instructed his yeoman.
"I'm sorry, Admiral. Colonel MacKenzie is in court They reconvened at 1600, Sir," Jen's voice sounded over the speaker.
The General rose from his seat. "Don't have time to wait for court to finish. Tell her I changed my mind... that I'm sending a junior officer over instead. Don't like it, but I guess that's what I'll do. You keep her here at JAG, AJ. And get her to put that baby on her personnel record. I don't want something like this happening again."
"Mike, I'm not at all sure this baby is hers..." AJ tried again.
"Well, she's the one who was going to leave it on the doorstep of the home," Stephenson said flatly. "Pretty damning evidence if you ask me."
"Where shall I deliver the baby?" Wade asked, looking back and forth between the two large men.
AJ sighed, "I'll have my yeoman give you her address on your way out. You can take it to her tonight, I suppose."
Meanwhile, in the courtroom, the senior member read from the piece of paper, "We find the defendant guilty as charged on all specifications."
Mac turned to her client and said, "If only you'd not insisted on taking the stand, Sergeant..."
"Ah, don't give me that, Colonel. You know you wanted to see me hang," the man rebuked her.
She looked him in the eye, "I did my best to get you off. But you're guilty, and you admitted that guilt right here in this courtroom for all to hear. Sergeant, I think you're the one who wants to hang."
The guards carted the prisoner away, and Bud stepped across the aisle to shake Mac's hand. When she didn't take it right away, he asked in a concerned voice, "Are you okay, Colonel?"
Mac looked up at Bud. "Perfectly, Bud. I've never defended anyone I wanted to see convicted so badly." She reached out and shook his hand. "Thank you. You did a superb job."
"You had me going there for a while, Ma'am. I really don't think the members would have found him guilty if he hadn't said what he did on the stand." They walked back toward the bullpen together.
Mac sighed, "No, I don't guess they would have."
"And you really tried to get him not to take the stand," Bud observed.
"I had to, Bud. I knew he was guilty, but that didn't mean I could relax my defense of the bastard," she explained as they walked through the double doors. "I'm just sorry it's my last case for a while."
"Your last case, Ma'am? What do you mean?" Bud asked.
"Looks like I'm out of JAG again, Bud," she sighed. "General Stephenson requested me for Iraq. I leave the day after tomorrow."
"Oh, Colonel! That's awful!"
She chuckled. "Yeah, well... that's how it goes, I guess."
Jen approached Mac and interrupted their conversation, "Excuse me, Ma'am, but the Admiral wants to see you in his office right away."
"What now?" Mac took a few seconds to drop her briefcase on her desk and then headed for the Admiral's office. She knocked lightly on the open door. "You wanted to see me, Sir?"
AJ rose and came from behind his desk. "Yes, Mac... come in. Have a seat." She hadn't closed the door, so he walked to it and pushed it shut.
Mac took the seat he offered. "More about my assignment? I called the CMC's office earlier..." she started, but AJ interrupted her.
"You're remaining here at JAG, Mac," he told her as he leaned against his desk.
She blinked. And blinked again. "Excuse me?"
"Stephenson said to tell you he changed his mind and that he's sending a junior officer in to do the job instead."
Mac watched the play of emotions on AJ's face. It wasn't often that they were visible, let alone noticeable. But they ranged the gamut this afternoon. She waited for him to continue; he obviously wasn't finished speaking.
"I'll have Coates undo all the case reassignments in the morning."
She waited for more, but he said nothing. "Is that all, Sir?"
AJ nodded and walked back behind his desk. He folded his arms across his chest and stared out the window. Then, as though he suddenly thought of something, he turned, "You will be at home tonight, Colonel?"
Mac turned surprised eyes to her CO. Forgetting that she'd accepted a dinner date with her next-door neighbor, she replied, "Yes, Sir. I don't have any plans to go out."
"Good."
Mac was very confused as she left his office. Very confused, but very happy that she wasn't headed for Iraq in two days' time.
Tuesday, 21 December 2004
1835 EST
Sarah MacKenzie's Apartment
Arlington, VirginiaMac remembered her dinner date as she drove home. She'd avoided the guy next door for 4 months, but he was so persistent. And she was so lonely. She hadn't been out on a date in over a year... not since before she left for Japan. Webb no longer seemed interested in her. 'Shame. I really liked Clay. I thought we were pretty good together.'
She knew what probably happened. After she left for Japan, most likely Harm flaunted it to Clay that they'd slept together. 'Once! It was only one time!' Mac had known it was a mistake when she let him lay her down on the bed. 'Hell, it was a mistake to go over to his apartment to begin with,' she groaned inwardly.
Well, she'd made a mess of it. And now she and Webb never saw each other. And she and Harm never saw each other. "I hope this guy isn't a nerd," she said to her reflection as she combed her hair.
The doorbell rang and she went to answer it. "Rather early to be Freddie," she realized.
She pulled the door open and was surprised when a couple came barreling into her apartment... carrying a baby and an enormous bassinet. "Merry Christmas from General Stephenson and Admiral Chegwidden!" chirped Mr. Wade.
"And the Atkins Foundling Home," added the woman.
Mac gaped at them. "What are you doing?"
"Bringing you back your baby, of course," Wade replied.
"But that's not my baby! I am not it's mother!" Mac almost yelled.
The woman gasped. "Shame on you!" she exclaimed, clutching the baby to her breast. "Denying your own child."
"You take that baby out of here. Right now," Mac insisted.
Wade narrowed his eyes and spoke harshly. "You do realize that General Stephenson canceled your orders to Iraq?"
"Yes, I know that," Mac replied. Then looked quizzically at the man before her. "But how do you know that?"
"And Admiral Chegwidden graciously agreed to take you back on his staff... just so you could stay here and raise your baby!" Wade continued.
"But that's not my baby!" Mac did yell this time.
The woman looked at Wade, who nodded toward the bassinet. She laid the baby in the basket and they hurried to the door. Mac stood in front of them. "Don't you leave that thing here!" she said frantically, pointing at the bassinet. When it was obvious they weren't going to collect the baby, she continued, "It'll be back at the foundling home before you get there!"
"I wouldn't try that if I were you!" Wade said in a menacing tone. "And I wouldn't try leaving it anywhere else either, because it'll come back to us. And we have its footprints!"
Mac closed the door after they left and turned back to look at the baby. "I don't believe this." She scooped the child up in her arms, and the baby gurgled. Mac felt almost guilty, though she didn't know why. "It's not that I don't like you," she explained to the child, "It's just that I couldn't do right by you. I'm all alone, too. And I work long hours. And I travel all the time..."
Her doorbell peeled again. She looked through the peephole and saw Freddie. "Oh, dear Lord," she sighed. "What am I going to do with him?" She quickly put the baby back in the basket and set it behind the sofa, out of sight.
Mac pulled the front door open a crack, but Freddie pushed it open and walked inside. "Hello, gorgeous! You ready?"
"Freddie, I'm not going to be able to go out tonight. I... um..." she thought hard... "I think I'm going to have a headache." She rubbed her temples with her fingertips.
"Not go? Headache?" Freddie complained. "Ah, come on, Sarie; I've got reservations at the country club. You'll love it."
"Really, Freddie, I can't go tonight," Mac repeated, cringing at his nickname for her... only just as she started speaking, the baby started crying.
"That sounds like a baby," Freddie observed.
"A baby? Here?" Mac repeated innocently.
"Yeah. Sounds just like a baby."
"Must be on the TV," Mac offered.
But Freddie looked over Mac's shoulder and saw the baby crawling out from behind the sofa. "What'd it do? Crawl out of the set?" he asked sarcastically.
Mac's eyes followed his gaze and she replied in kind, "You mean you didn't see the stork flying through?" Mac groaned and reached down to pick up the baby. She jiggled it in her arms and soon the crying stopped.
"Is it yours?" Freddie asked.
"No, it isn't mine," Mac replied caustically.
"Where'd it come from?" he pressed.
Mac wasn't quite sure how to go about explaining... or if she even wanted to. "I got it for Christmas," she said.
Freddie quirked an eyebrow. "This Christmas... or last?"
"Freddie, I really can't go to dinner tonight. I can't just leave..."
"No problem, Sarie. I'm game to stay in. There's a movie on I've been wanting to see for years... Navy SeALs. We can watch that. You can make dinner. We'll have a nice little family time," he suggested.
When he said the name of the movie, Mac remembered what the man from the home said: "Merry Christmas from General Stephenson and Admiral Chegwidden!" "And Admiral Chegwidden graciously agreed to take you back on his staff... just so you could stay here and raise your baby!"
Mac almost gasped. 'The Admiral thinks this is my baby? What on Earth? How could he? He knows me better than that!' Then she got angry. AJ knew those people were going to deliver the baby tonight. He'd asked specifically if she would be home! 'Why that arrogant...' She walked to the coat closet and grabbed her jacket. "Come on, Freddie. Let's go!"
Freddie opened the door and turned to see Mac carrying the baby. "You're not bringing that!" he insisted. "No kids allowed at the country club..."
"Only part way," Mac assured him. "I just hope we don't get pulled over for not having a car seat," she mumbled to herself. Mac gave Freddie directions and soon they pulled up outside of AJ Chegwidden's home in McLean. "I'll be right back," she stated, climbing out of the car. It was obvious that he was having guests tonight. The house was lit up and there were two extra cars in the driveway. 'I wonder if this was such a good idea?' she thought for a moment... but only for a moment.
Mac walked up to the front door and pressed the button. She could hear the chimes sound inside, and soon the door opened. Mac didn't recognize the teenage girl who pulled the door open. "Can I help you?"
"I'd like to see Admiral Chegwidden, please."
"Sorry, he's not available right now," the girl said. "He's out back with..."
Mac pushed her way inside and saw two women sitting in the living room. "Fine. Then I'll just leave him this." Mac strode over to the sofa and laid the baby down. The girl and the women gaped at Mac, causing Mac to continue speaking. "It's his responsibility. He got me into this, and he's the only one who can get me out."
All three thought the worst at that, but one of the women found her tongue, "But you can't just leave a baby here!"
"Watch me!" Mac retorted as she strode out the front door and climbed into the car. "Let's go, Freddie!"
AJ heard the car door slam as he walked inside the living room, followed by another man. "Was that someone here?" he asked the women. "I thought I heard the doorbell." No one answered. They just stared at the sofa. And then they stared at AJ. And then the sofa. "Meryl?" AJ's gaze followed hers and he saw the baby. "What in the world?" he exclaimed.
"That's a baby!" observed the other man.
"Brilliant deduction, Einstein," quipped Captain Meryl Rossbach.
"But what is it doing here?" AJ puzzled.
"A young woman left it for you, Uncle AJ," AJ's goddaughter, Lisa, explained.
"Did she leave her name?" asked Henry Lawson, Meryl's brother-in-law.
"I know her name," AJ stated. "What I don't know is why she brought this baby to me!"
Meryl's sister, Claudia Lawson, offered that explanation. "She said you were responsible for it, AJ. I think we all know what that means."
"The hell you do!" AJ barked. He turned to Meryl. "I'm sorry, Meryl, but I'm going to have to disappear for a while." He went to the closet and claimed his coat, shrugging his arms into it.
"Would you like me to go with you?" she asked hesitantly, hoping he'd reply in the negative.
"Thank you, Meryl, but no. I'll return the baby to its mother and meet you at the restaurant in an hour. You all go ahead and start; don't wait for me to get there." He turned to Lisa. "Do be sure they save me a piece of Red Velvet cake, though, okay?" he teased. Lisa nodded.
AJ scooped up the baby and headed outside. "Need to move some cars around!" he called back inside.
The cars on the road now instead of the driveway, AJ was working on securing the baby in the back seat. He stood up and yelled to the two walking up the driveway. "Hey, either of you have a car seat?" he asked. "This built-in thing isn't for an infant."
Henry replied, "Yeah, Claudia always keeps one in the trunk; I'll get it."
Tuesday, 21 December 2004
2145 EST
Sarah MacKenzie's Apartment
Arlington, VirginiaMac and Freddie walked into the lobby and headed up the stairs to her apartment. "Thanks for a lovely dinner, Freddie," Mac tried to get rid of him. She unlocked the door to her apartment and turned back to say, "Good night."
"How about a little night cap, Sarie?" he pressed.
"I haven't any liquor, Freddie. You know that," Mac replied.
"You have water. I'll just take a glass of water."
"Sorry, they just turned it off," Mac said sarcastically.
Freddie pushed on Mac and the door swung open, almost tumbling them into the living room. "Water! Water! I need water!" he exclaimed loudly.
They heard a male voice hushing them. "Shhh!"
That's when they saw AJ sitting on a chair, staring at them. "What? Who are you?" Freddie dared.
"Get out," AJ growled. "Your date is over for the night." When Freddie didn't move, AJ stood up and moved toward him menacingly, "Scram!"
Freddie ran for the door, "Good night, Sarah!"
Mac's gaze hadn't left AJ's face. "What are you doing here? And how did you get in my apartment?" she finally asked.
"The landlady was kind enough to let me... to let us in out of the cold," he replied grimly, nodding toward the sleeping baby lying in the basket next to the sofa. "We've been here for three hours... crying all the time!"
"Why?"
"What the hell do you mean, 'Why?'? You thought I would just keep the baby at my house? Mac, what's gotten into you? I don't even know you anymore!" AJ said.
Mac looked at him sadly. "You know me better than anyone else, AJ. How could you think this is my baby? You know I haven't been pregnant."
"You were gone for a year, Mac. And just before you left, you had two lovers... that I know of!" Then he muttered so that she didn't hear him, "Who knows how many others?"
"That was an accident..." Mac tried to explain.
"I'm sure it was an accident. But it happened. And now you have to face up to it. Take care of your baby, Mac. And get the thing listed in your personnel records tomorrow."
"But, Admiral..."
"No 'buts' about it, Colonel. Stephenson was not pleased when he found out about this."
Mac muttered under her breath this time, "Who cares about Stephenson? I wasn't pleased when I found out about this!"
She turned to speak again, but AJ had heard her last comment. "Mac, does he know? The father?"
Mac shrugged. "I doubt it," she admitted. The woman she'd seen hurrying away from the home was probably the mother. In which case, the father most likely had no clue of this baby's existence.
"Mac, there are ways to make the father help support this child. But he has to know," AJ said quietly.
Mac shook her head. He didn't believe her. He actually thought this child was hers. He wanted her to add it to her personnel records. This was absurd!
"Mac? Is it Webb's?" AJ chanced. Mac bit her lower lip and shook her head. AJ almost sighed in relief... until he thought of the other possibility that he knew of. "Rabb?"
Mac shook her head again. "No." She turned around and faced AJ, a hurt expression on her face. "Any other names you want to throw out?"
AJ did sigh then. "No, Mac. It's none of my business." He turned to leave and stopped, his hand on the doorknob. "But if you need anything... help... money... whatever... you call me." She nodded. "I mean it, Mac," he insisted.
AJ barely closed the outer door to the apartments when there was another knock on Mac's inside door. She looked through the peephole, and this time saw her landlady. "Oh, no." Mac opened the door and smiled; it was hard not to smile at her landlady. Mrs. Dugan was an elderly widow who loved everyone. And everyone, it seemed, loved her. "Good evening, Mrs. Dugan."
The landlady walked inside, wiping her hands on her apron. There was nothing on her hands; it was just a habit. "I want to have a talk with you, young woman!"
"Mrs. Dugan, I'm really tired and I was just going to get ready for bed now..."
The baby woke up and started crying then. Mrs. Dugan walked over to the bassinet, "You didn't tell me about a baby, Sarah. Why didn't you tell me about the baby?"
"There's been an awful mix-up, Mrs. Dugan."
The woman reached into the basket and picked up the crying infant. "There now, Precious; you come to Grandma Dugan," she cooed, bouncing the baby gently in her arms. "Now then... it's okay, Sweetheart." And almost instantly, the baby ceased crying.
All the while, Mac was trying to explain. "Mrs. Dugan, I got reassigned today... to Iraq... leaving the day after tomorrow... then I went for a walk and I saw a little bundle on a doorstep... Oh, you're just not going to believe this," Mac sighed, shaking her head. But she tried again, "Well, I scooped the baby up and then they thought it was mine and... Oh, this is just getting worse."
Mrs. Dugan kissed the baby's cheek and cooed to it some more as Mac continued. "Then my assignment got cancelled and I'm staying here. But it was because they thought the baby..." Mac threw her hands up in the air, "This is just too incredible! Even I don't believe it anymore!" She turned and looked at her landlady. "Mrs. Dugan, what am I going to do?"
The old woman smiled, "Well, you've got to take care of your little baby." She patted the child's rump. "Feels kind of damp."
"Da-amp?" Mac stammered. Mrs. Dugan nodded and carried the baby to Mac's bedroom. "Oh!" Mac realized what her landlady had inferred. "Oh, Mrs. Dugan!" Mac argued, following her into the bedroom. "That's not my little baby!"
Mrs. Dugan looked from the baby to Mac and back again. "Looks just like you," she smiled. Then she laid the baby down on the bed and unbundled it. "What's its name?" she asked as she pulled the wet clothes from its little body.
Mac gulped. "Name?" She thought quickly. "Umm... Alice," she said.
Mrs. Dugan pulled the diaper off and smiled, "Albert. That's a nice name."
Mac's eyes widened as she looked down at the naked baby. 'Yes indeed, it's a boy.' she realized.
"You have any diapers?" asked Mrs. Dugan.
"Oh. Yes, I'll get one," Mac replied, stumbling into the bathroom and pulling a diaper from the linen closet. 'Good thing I keep a small stash of these for when Harriett comes by with the kids.'
Mrs. Dugan changed the baby, making the too-large diaper fit as best she could. "Probably going to leak some. You really should buy a smaller size," the landlady told her.
Mac nodded. "Uh huh."
"Where will he stay while you're at work?" asked Mrs. Dugan, wrapping the child in the blanket from the bassinet.
Mac shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I..."
"You'll stay with me, Sweetheart," Mrs. Dugan cooed to the baby as she picked him back up and hugged him. "You're just too precious for your own good!"
Wednesday, 22 December 2004
0915 EST
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VirginiaMac was late arriving at the office, but no one seemed to notice. It wasn't very busy just now, right before Christmas. 'Good thing,' Mac thought as she yawned again, opening her briefcase and pulling out files. She wasn't quite sure what to do about the baby. Mac knew she couldn't just keep the baby; he wasn't hers. Sure, the child's mother apparently left him at the home, but that still didn't make it right for Mac to just...
Her thoughts were interrupted by her phone ringing. "Colonel MacKenzie," she answered, sitting down.
"Good morning, Colonel. This is Mr. Wade returning your call from the Atkins Foundling Home," said the voice over the wire. Mac smiled. She was sure the man would see reason today.
"Yes, Mr. Wade. Good morning. I'm calling about the baby you brought me last night."
"Your sweet baby boy; how is he this morning? Mother and son had a nice reunion last night after we left, I trust?"
"Mr. Wade. As I tried to explain to you and your staff yesterday..." And Mac recounted the entire story again.
When she finished, the man simply replied, "Colonel MacKenzie, I find it very difficult to understand how a woman of your position can deny her own child. You gave that little boy life and nurtured him for the last 7 months. How can you just give him up?"
Mac got to her feet and replied, "I can't believe this! The child isn't mine!"
"Well, if you want to take the matter to court, Colonel, that's your choice. But as far as the home and Child Welfare is concerned, the baby belongs to you."
"Child Welfare?"
"But of course. We informed them yesterday afternoon of your situation and that we had remedied it and would return your baby to you. They already called this morning to confirm it."
"But I... I..." Mac stammered, but before she got her wits about her to reply, Wade hung up. "Now what do I do?" she slumped into her chair. She decided to call Child Welfare next. Surely they would listen.
Just as Wade told her, they knew all about her and the baby... her baby, as they called the infant. And to her dismay, they didn't heed her story any better than Wade. "I've never heard of anything so ridiculous," she muttered as she headed toward the break room for another cup of coffee.
Thursday, 23 December 2004
0930 EST
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VirginiaMac was so tired. Her eyes kept closing and every couple of minutes, she started to nod off. Giving up, she laid her head down on her desk and was almost asleep when she heard the Admiral's voice. "Good morning, Colonel."
Mac jerked her head up and it bounced around in much the way the bobble head dolls do. She tried to open her eyes, but only one eyelid would lift. "I can hear you, but I can't see you."
AJ chuckled. "Try opening both eyes, Mac."
She did and smiled weakly. "Good morning, Sir."
"Is it?"
"Well, it's morning, anyway."
"Not getting much sleep?"
Mac shook her head. "He doesn't like to sleep at night. He likes to sleep during the day, when I'm gone. Then he wants to stay up all night. I haven't slept a wink in two nights."
AJ quipped, "Other women have babies. They get through it."
"Yeah, but I got mine so sudden," Mac replied.
AJ grinned, "Well, try to get some sleep over the holiday, Mac." He stopped at the doorway and turned back to face her. "You have everything you need for it?"
Mac blinked. "Him. It's a him."
"For him, then. Do you have everything you need?" AJ repeated.
Mac shook her head and laid it back down on her desk, closing her eyes again. "So sudden... don't have anything... so sudden..." And she was sound asleep.
AJ smiled at his kick-ass Marine. He turned off the light, shut her office door, and walked back to his own office. Then he picked up the phone and called Information. "I'd like the number for Babies R Us in Falls Church, please."
He dialed that number next. "I'd like some help in purchasing some..." AJ searched for the right word, "necessities... for a 7-month old baby, please. His mother has very little for him, and it's been almost 30 years since I had a baby in the house. I'd like to come by this afternoon. Do you have someone who can help me with this?"
The woman from Babies R Us gushed, "Most definitely, Sir. Mary Dragoo is our Special Relations coordinator, and I'm sure she'll be delighted to help you. How does 3:30 sound?"
Two hours later, Mac woke up, startled to find herself sitting in her office, her head on her desk. She jerked aright and looked around. Her door was closed... and her light was off. 'That's odd,' she thought. 'I know I had the light on when I...' Then she remembered the Admiral's visit to her office.
Her eyes widened as she realized that she must have fallen asleep with him still there; she certainly didn't remember his leaving. "Oh, God..." She stood up and stretched. "I need coffee."
Mac headed through the bullpen to the break room but stopped when she heard Harriett's voice. "Colonel! I didn't realize you were here today, Ma'am."
Mac winced. "I'm here, Harriett."
"Working in the dark? Do you have a headache? Can I get you some pain relievers?"
Mac was just about to reply when the double doors opened and a female Captain and teenage girl entered the bullpen. They looked vaguely familiar to Mac, but it wasn't until the girl spoke to her that she recognized them.
"Oh, my God! It's you!!" cried Lisa.
Mac blushed profusely. Captain Rossbach's jaw fell open and her eyes grew wide. "Hush, Lisa."
"But Mom, it's her! The lady who left her baby at Uncle AJ's the other night," Lisa insisted.
Mac stood transfixed, staring at the girl and her mother. Harriett couldn't keep still... not where a baby was concerned. "Baby? What baby?"
They all ignored Harriett's query. Instead, the Captain stated the obvious, "You work here?"
Mac nodded. "Colonel Sarah MacKenzie, Ma'am."
"You work for AJ," she stated flatly. Mac nodded again. "Oh, my God," she breathed.
"Mom, she said the baby was..." Lisa started.
Her mother quickly clapped her hand over the girl's mouth to quiet her. "Not another word, Lisa," she said in a warning voice, but still looking at Mac.
"What baby?" Harriett asked again.
Captain Rossbach looked right into her daughter's eyes and repeated, emphasizing each word, "Not. Another. Word." Lisa nodded, and her mother removed her hand. The Captain turned back to Mac, still ignoring Harriett. "I'm Captain Meryl Rossbach. This is my daughter, Lisa."
The Admiral's yeoman heard the names from her desk and buzzed the Admiral on the intercom to let him know his lunch dates had arrived.
"Captain," Mac nodded to the Captain. Then she looked at Lisa. "And you're the Admiral's goddaughter, I believe?"
Lisa nodded. "Uh huh."
Mac nodded again. "Well, if you'll excuse me... I was just going to get some coffee. Nice meeting you both."
Just as Mac turned around, the wail of a baby echoed through the bullpen. Every head turned to the double doors that had just opened and watched Mrs. Dugan walk in carrying the infant. Mac closed her eyes. 'Oh, no.' As soon as Mac turned around, the baby smiled and stopped crying. He obviously hadn't liked his mother turning away from him, poor thing.
"Sarah!" Mrs. Dugan called, seeing her tenant across the room. "Sarah, I'm so sorry, Dear, but I forgot that my dentist's office won't allow anyone but the patient in the back. Not even a baby, can you imagine?" she clucked, making her way over to Mac and depositing the baby in her arms. "And it took so long to get this appointment, I just can't reschedule it now." She played with the baby's hands as she continued speaking... as though to the child. "So, I just need to leave Albert here with Mommy for about an hour, and I'll come take him home."
After the initial gasps of shock, silence reigned in the bullpen. And Mac knew why. She faked a smile and thanked Mrs. Dugan. "I understand, Mrs. Dugan."
"I hope so, Dear. I did call the dentist to see if they'd make an exception for your little Albert, but they said not," she sighed heavily. "I can't imagine anyone making a rule like that. Obviously the fool who did has no children of his own."
"It's probably for insurance reasons or some such," Mac offered, bouncing the baby in her arms. "You'll be back in an hour?" she confirmed.
"Give or take a few minutes," Mrs. Dugan replied before she scurried out of the bullpen.
Mac took a deep breath and closed her eyes. When she opened them, it was just as she expected: every eye in the bullpen was trained on her. There was confusion in some eyes (Harriett's and Bud's, especially), shock and disbelief in others, and anger in Meryl's.
Suddenly Mac wondered about Meryl's presence at the Admiral's home the other night. And now here at JAG today. 'Are they dating?' she wondered.
She didn't have long to wonder, though. The Admiral chose that instant to leave his office and walk into the bullpen. "Captain Rossbach," he smiled, extending his hand to her in greeting.
"Admiral," she was barely civil in her reply.
AJ raised an eyebrow at her tone, but he still turned and hugged Lisa. "Hello, Darlin'. Thanks, again, for bringing me a piece of that cake the other night."
Lisa shrugged, "Glad you liked it."
AJ heard the distinct sound of a baby gurgling. He turned to see Mac's holding the infant. "Mac? Why is he here?"
The others in the bullpen were surprised. 'He knows that the Colonel has a baby?!'
Mac apologized, "My landlady just dropped him off. She has a dentist appointment. She'll be back in an hour, Admiral." Mac jiggled the baby in her arms again. "I'll just keep him in my office, if that's okay, Sir?"
AJ sighed heavily but nodded. "Okay, Mac. But be sure he's gone by the time I get back from lunch."
"Aye, Sir."
AJ turned back to Meryl and Lisa. "I'm afraid I won't have time for the OC today after all. I have a conference call at 1300. We'll have enough time to go over the paperwork, though," he assured Meryl.
"Can we just go to Quizno's instead, Uncle AJ?" Lisa hoped aloud.
"Sure, that'll be fine."
As they made their way to the elevator, Lisa spoke again. "Uncle AJ, I thought it was against regs to be involved with someone in the same chain of command." She asked the question, but her intonation was that of a statement.
AJ nodded, "It is, Lisa. You've known that for years. Why?"
"Then how come Colonel MacKenzie still works for you? How do you get around the regs?"
"Colonel MacKenzie?" AJ repeated in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
Meryl spoke up then. "Colonel MacKenzie is the woman who left her baby at your house two nights ago, Admiral. And she so much as said the child was yours. And now we find out the baby's name is Albert."
AJ gulped, "Albert?"
"What else are we supposed to think?"
AJ spent the next hour trying to explain the situation to the Rossbachs. Mac, on the other hand, didn't even try to explain to her co-workers. She just poured herself a cup of coffee and carried it and Albert back to her office... and kicked the door shut.
Harriett finally chanced knocking on Mac's office door. Mac didn't reply, so Harriett opened the door quietly. "Colonel?" she asked softly, not wanting to wake the child if he was asleep.
"Come in, Harriett," Mac sighed. She knew she wouldn't be able to keep Harriett out for long. "Have a seat."
Harriett sat down opposite Mac and watched her hold the baby. She cooed to him, kissed him, tickled him... all without even realizing it, Harriett was sure. "How do you happen to have a baby, Ma'am?"
Mac kissed Albert on the forehead. "Just lucky, I guess."
"But he isn't really yours, right?"
Mac looked up, startled. "He looks like me!"