HONOR & BETRAYAL PT
22
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INT
MILITARY PRISON OF FORT LEAVENWORTH
TWO DAYS LATER
1256 HOURS
Mac and her uncle, Matthew O'Hara are seated on opposite sides
of a long table where several other prisoners and their visitors have also
gathered. Guards are posted throughout the room for security purposes as
Mac and Uncle Matt engage in conversation.
MAC
(smiling affectionately at her uncle)
It's so good to see you, Uncle Matt!
UNCLE
And likewise, Sarah!.........But I know that this isn't just a
social call, now is it?
MAC
(shaking her head negatively but with a smile)
I could never hide anything from you, could I?
UNCLE
(smiling)
Are you kidding, Sarah!.......Not the old Colonel!........And
congratulations in person on your promotion, ......Colonel!
MAC
Thanks!
UNCLE MATT
Now, tell me what's on your mind.
MAC
Well, surely you've been following the news?
UNCLE MATT
Truthfully, Sarah,...... no,..........well, not at first,
anyway. At least not until the guys in here put the pieces together and
realized that the Marine Corps Colonel who had filed rape charges against a
Naval Seal was my niece.......Why didn't you let me know, Sarah?
MAC
It wasn't intentional, Uncle Matt, but it's all been
very difficult for me, you know,.... and.....well,...... I had to deal with my
emotions first before I could even begin to deal with how you would take all
this.
UNCLE MATT
I understand that, Sarah, and I respect that as
well! But learning about your dilemma through prison
scuttlebutt was very difficult for me to say the least.
MAC
I'm sorry, Uncle Matt, but I am here now and......well, I
surely need your emotional support!
UNCLE MATT
(reaching his hand across the table)
And you've got it, Sarah, as always.
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INT
ANNAPOLIS HOME
1300 HOURS
His wounded limb remaining in a sling, we find Harm seated
alone in the den in front of a burning fireplace with a bottle of liquor
on the coffee table before him. Holding a nearly empty glass in his hand,
he twists and turns it within his right palm, his demeanor revealing a
slightly intoxicated man who at the moment is consumed with anger and
bitterness. As he sits there alone, Trish enters the room just in time to
witness Harm finish the glass of liquor in his hand and then toss it angrily
towards the stone face of the fireplace shattering the glass.
TRISH
Well, I hope that made you feel better, Harm!
Harm gazes up at her somewhat startled by her interjection and
then quickly feeling embarrassment at what he had just done.
HARM
Sorry, mom!........I'll replace the glass, I
promise.
TRISH
(as she approaches him)
Oh, I'm not worried about the broken glass, but I am
worried about my son and why all of a sudden he has been spending his days with
a bottle of vodka instead of his case files.
Trish joins Harm on the sofa and examines his demeanor
closely.
HARM
Come on mom, aren't you exaggerating a little?
TRISH
No, I don't think so!....I mean since Admiral Chegwidden's
visit, you have totally withdrawn from me and every time I do see you, you're
drinking.
HARM
Just working out some issues, mom. It'll
pass!
TRISH
Since when do you turn to drinking to help solve your
problems! I've never seen you like this.
HARM
Well maybe that's because you haven't lived with me since I
was seventeen!
TRISH
Harm, please tell me what's going on.
HARM
(standing and walking toward the fireplace)
Mom, it's ok. Trust me, I'm handling it!
.... And besides, I don't need you worrying about me anymore than
you already are.
TRISH
I'm your mother, Harm, it's my prerogative....and frankly this
drinking of yours has me very worried. So, I believe me when I tell
you that it would be reassuring to me if you would discuss the reason why
you are behaving this way.
Harm gazes back at his mother for a long moment and catches
the determined look in her eyes........that same look that somehow totally
penetrated his very being and had always demanded his full confession even as a
child.
HARM
(sighing deeply)
Okay, ......you win! (he pauses for a long
moment) I've been ordered to act as defense counsel in Captain
Peterson's court martial.
TRISH
(shocked by Harm's revelation)
My God, Harm, what was the Admiral thinking?
HARM
I have reason to believe that for the most part, it
wasn't the Admiral's decision.
TRISH
(standing and walking to Harm)
Harm, what on earth are you trying to say?
HARM
Just that I know that under normal circumstances
Admiral Chegwidden never would have ordered any of his JAG's to accept a case
that they felt unsuitable for or incapable of handling.
TRISH
So why is this one so different?
HARM
Well it seems that Captain Peterson
personally requested that I defend him and apparently what the Captain
wants, he gets.
TRISH
What are you planning on doing about it?
HARM
Well, my choices are very limited!........Either I obey my
orders and betray Mac by defending that sonofabitch, or....... I willfully
disobey my orders and effectively ruin my career.
TRISH
(with deep concern)
Harm, willful disobedience could not only see you court
martialed, but sentenced to serving time in prison,
couldn't it?
HARM
Depending on the presiding judge, that's
certainly a possibility!
TRISH
Well then, surely you're not
considering.........
HARM
Mom, I can't do this!.... Not to Mac!
TRISH
Do you honestly feel that Mac would rather see you destroy
your career than defend this man against her charges?
HARM
Probably not!.......But I know how these kinds of trials work,
mom!.... I'd have to destroy Mac's character in order to win this case and I
just don't believe I can do that!
TRISH
Based on the evidence, can the defense win this
case?
HARM
It's basically her word against his! It could go either
way depending on how the case is argued.
TRISH
Then you will have to wrestle with your conscious on this
one, and regardless of whether or not the evidence supports an
acquital, Captain Peterson deserves to be defended by a capable attorney
just as Mac does. You will have to detach yourself from this case and
treat Mac as you would any other plaintiff. If you cannot do that, then
you will stand to loose everything you've ever worked
for!
HARM
Yah,... and if I can......it'll be Mac that I am
destroying!.....Quite a trade off don't you think?
TRISH
Harm, Mac's an attorney. She must have went into this
knowing full well what it could cost her. So don't do this to
yourself. If you don't defend Captain Peterson, someone else will and the
results will all be the same.
HARM
You're right on that count, mom!.....But the difference will
be that at least I'll still have my integrity!
TRISH
Oh, that you will, Harm, but the question is, will that be
enough for you when you find yourself sharing a cell in Leavenworth with some of
the very same people your lawyering skills put there in the first place? (she
pauses a moment to allow Harm to absorb her words) Weigh all of your
options out carefully, darling!.......This is your life we are talking about
here.
>To Be Continued
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:>)