Epilogue

6 months later

Harm and Mac stepped into their house after a long and emotionally draining day. The jury finally arrived at a verdict for Jamie Scott. It had taken six long months, but it finally came. Jamie got himself some very good lawyers who were able to postpone court dates and complicate what should have been an open and shut case. It also took months to establish whether or not Jamie was mentally fit to stand trial. His lawyers were able to find doctors willing to testify that Jamie may not have been criminally responsible due to mental illness. What was worse was that Mac herself had no choice but to testify that the Jamie she knew in the past would never have done such a thing.

Harm had worried greatly about Mac throughout the trial. A few weeks after Harm rescued Mac in Oregon, they found out she was pregnant. Although they were thrilled at the news, Jamie's trial and the stress it brought put a damper on their happiness. There was one incident during Jamie's trial where Harm lost it. Mac was on the witness stand testifying against Jamie when his attorney decided to try and discredit Mac based on her past. He ripped apart Mac unmercifully on the stand, doing his best to shred her credibility to pieces. Mac was of course the star witness. Normally, Harm knew Mac would be able to take whatever that sleaze lawyer threw at her, but she was also four months pregnant and he knew that the trial was taking its toll on her. Harm's instincts to protect her won over his better judgment and an outburst from him in court during Mac's cross-examination got him one night in the slammer plus a hefty fine. Mac of course was angry at Harm at first for not thinking she could handle it, but that didn't last very long as she knew why he did it.

Finally, after months of postponements and showboating from Jamie's lawyers, the law came out on top. Jamie was convicted of aggravated assault, sexual assault, and kidnapping among other smaller offences. He would not be eligible for parole for at least twenty years.

Harm could tell that Mac was relieved that they could put everything behind them and look forward to the future, but he also saw her grieve for the friend she held so dearly in her heart for so many years. Mac herself said that she could probably never forgive Jamie for what he put them through. However, Mac also mentioned how she couldn't help but wonder whether or not Jamie had been mentally ill. Harm knew that it was Mac's way of trying to save the good memories she did have of him during their childhood. By creating the doubt in her mind, she could make herself believe that she really did have a friend that cared about her… once upon a time. Harm felt a little bit of jealousy of the fact that Mac had a hard time letting go, but he at least understood. He was the king of not letting go after all.

"Hey, are you ok?" Harm asked Mac, embracing her from behind and resting his hand on her swollen belly.

"Yeah, I'm ok. I'm just glad that it's all over," Mac said, as she started to make them some tea.

Harm leaned against the kitchen counter, "Me too. I know this wasn't easy for you, Mac, but he was dangerous, he needed to be put away."

"I know, Harm. And he deserved every year of his sentence… but the look he gave me as he was being led out of the court room… He looked… sorry… I don't know…"

It really pissed Harm off how Jamie could emotionally manipulate Mac even with just a look, but he forced himself to see it from her point of view. "He was probably trying to make you feel sorry… make you feel bad. He knows how compassionate you are…" At Mac's heartbroken look, Harm took on a softer tone, "Or maybe he really was sorry, but it doesn't erase everything he did, Mac. He attacked you, he shot you, he lied to you, he kidnapped you and was about to rape you. He really was lucky he only got twenty years."

Mac wiped away her tears, "I know, Harm. I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm being so emotional… Hormones I guess," Mac said, chuckling.

"Yeah, probably," Harm said, taking her hand.

"Harm, I'm so sorry you got dragged into the mess that my life is prone to becoming every now and again," Mac said, slumping into the chair next to Harm in the kitchen.

"Hey, hey it wasn't your fault. You had no idea. If there's anyone to blame, it's Jamie."

"I know that Harm, but I can't help but feel guilty that I believed the things he told me which was nothing more than an attempt to try and manipulate me."

"I'll admit that it hurt me, Mac. I mean, it seemed like you had so little faith in my love for you," Harm said.

Mac couldn't make herself meet his eyes. She knew that what he said was true.

"You're right, Harm. My faith did waver a little bit, and all I can really say is that I'm sorry… I'm so sorry."

Harm reached out and wiped a stray tear from Mac's cheek, "It's not entirely your fault Mac. I know that in the past I've given you reason to doubt… Jamie, knowing you as well as he did, simply exploited that."

"Harm…"

"No, Mac listen… I heard a lot of the things he said to you… out on the porch that night. I guess what hurt me the most, aside from the fact that you believed a lot of what he said, was the fact that a lot of what he said was true."

"No they weren't, Harm!"

"Not the part about me not loving you. That was definitely not true. I love you more than anything… I mean if I learned anything about this whole mess with Jamie is that I can survive losing anything in my life but you… But the stuff that he said about the things I did in the past that hurt you… they were all true."

"I did things that hurt you too Harm… we're both guilty there."

"Perhaps… but I have to admit… I started the whole ball of hurt rolling the day I left you to go flying. I didn't understand it then… but I do now. I didn't realize the repercussions my actions would have. I was so selfish that all I could think about was flying… That was the immature Harmon Rabb for you. I had this kind of tunnel vision, I didn't see the bigger picture. I became obsessed with being able to leave flying on my own terms… I acted like a kid in many ways."

"And has Peter Pan grown up?" Mac asked.

"Oh yeah, I promise, Mac. My only obsession from now on is you and our family."

"Can I ask you a question, Harm?"

"Of course, hon, anything."

"After Mattie's accident, why did you push me away? You wouldn't let me help you… You completely shut me out. I had to ask Jen to check on you because I didn't know any other way to find out if you were ok or not."

Harm heard the pain in his wife's voice and immediately hated himself for having done that to her. "Mac, I'm so sorry… I really wasn't thinking straight during that time. I mean, I felt so alone… things between us had stalled… I was hurting so much… In hindsight, I needed you then probably more than I ever had before… but I was scared of the uncertainty between us."

"Did you do it to get back at me? I mean I pushed you away… after Webb died, after I found out about my endometriosis…"

"Subconsciously… maybe… but not intentionally to hurt you. I was hurting so much back then that I wouldn't have thought of something so trivial as to get back at you… Things were such a mess back then, Mac.

"Yeah, you're right. But whether or not you meant to hurt me, you did. And I have to admit, I deserved it. I got a taste of what it was like to be the one pushed away. It hurt because I saw you and Mattie as a family, and myself as someone who would never be a part of it."

"We are a family! I'm so sorry you felt that way. Mac, if I could take it back, I would… but I can't, and all I can ask is for you to believe me that I'll never shut you out like that again… There's no uncertainty in my heart anymore, Mac. Now, there's nothing I'm more sure of than you and me… of us."

"Me too, Harm," Mac said. "Let's not dwell on this anymore. Jamie brought back memories of us that I'd rather not think about, but at the same time, I think it was a good thing that we talked about them."

"You're right. We need to put all the hurt behind us, Mac. We have a really bright future ahead of us and we need to focus on that… The best part of it all is this little one on the way," Harm said, placing his hand on Mac's protruding belly.

"Yeah, I can't wait to meet her -"

"Or him," Harm said. "Anyway, with my looks… we'll call him Mini-Me."

"Like in Austin Powers? Are you kidding, Harm?"

"Aww, c'mon, Mac. If it's a girl, we'll name her after you. I can just picture our little girl, she'll have your big brown eyes and your dark wavy hair, and your charming smile. She'll be beautiful, our little MacKenzie Rabb."

"Mac Rabb?! I'm sorry, Harm. I'm not naming our daughter that! It sounds like a reject burger from McDonalds."

Harm couldn't help but laugh, "Ok, ok… I guess we'll come up with something else, we still have a few more months anyway."

Harm and Mac finished their tea and together started washing and drying the dishes.

"Did you tell Mattie it was ok for her to sleep over at Jen's?" Mac asked.

"Yeah, she and Jen will have lunch together tomorrow, she should be back in the afternoon."

"Hmm… you know what that means?"

"Oh yeah, we have the house all to ourselves."

"You got that right, Flyboy," Mac said, as she sauntered out of the kitchen and made her way to their bedroom.

Harm almost dropped the teacup he was drying in his haste to follow her.

The End

Yay! I'm done! Thanks everyone for all the feedback and suggestions! It gave me motivation to finish this. I hope you all liked the story, and I hope I've wrapped it up well enough to satisfy most of you. I know I raised a lot of issues in the story that I myself didn't know how to reconcile. But I hope I at least tied most of the loose ends. Thanks again!