Couldn't live without you, I guess.....
She had been sitting in that cell for too long... Three months it had been, three months of torture, abuse, and rape, but she hadn't told them anything, they hadn't broken her.
She was sitting in that chair, patiently waiting for the end, for she knew that Saleem wouldn't keep her alive much longer, she could see it in his eyes, in the way he talked, he had given up hope of ever extracting information out of her. That day had started like all the days she spent in that hellhole, a couple of Saleem's men had come, asking her the same questions, over, and over again.
"Who are you? What are you doing here? Who are you working for? Why are you here? Tell me everything you know about NCIS"
The same questions over, and over again. But she knew that this time, something was off, he had heard commotion earlier, she knew that something happened. That's when she had heard the door opening loudly behind her, she had heard footsteps coming towards her. Saleem faced her with an evil look on his face. What did he want now?
Saleem had put a bag over her head, and lifted her off that chair. This is it, she thought to herself, the end. He is going to kill me.
Saleem had dragged her out of the room. This is it, he is going to take me outside, and kill me. Finally...
But to her surprise, he had pushed her down on another chair, in another room, down the corridor. What is he doing?
"Questions are being asked in town about missing NCIS agents." What is he talking about? "Concerns that US forces might mobilize." US forces? "One of you will tell me the names and locations of all the operatives in the area, and the other one will die."
There she was, sitting in that chair, when all of a sudden; the bag was removed from her head. Ziva winced, taken aback from the light in her face. Her eyes focused slowly, and she saw him. Him, Tony, what is he doing here? -"I will give you a moment to decide who lives."- She saw his eyes, the expression on his face, he looked surprised, happy. Why was he feeling that way? He was strapped to a chair, probably about to get killed, but she didn't see fear in his eyes, he looked at her with a faint smile, seeming relieved to see her.
"Well, how was your summer?"
Why is he here, out of all the people, why did it have to be him?
"Out of everyone, in the world, who could've found me, it had to be you."
"You're welcome." Why isn't he scared? Doesn't he understand the seriousness of the situation?
"Tony, why are you here?"
"Couldn't live without you, I guess..."
During her time in that cell, Ziva had come to the conclusion that she loved Anthony DiNozzo, she loved him with all her heart. She loved him through all the silliness with Rivkin, with Jeanne, or with any other bimbo that he had gone out with. She loved him, and now she knew that he loved her too.
"You have thirty seconds to live Saleem." She believed him, she knew that no matter what they would get out of this prison together, and spend the rest of their lives together. "Remember when I told you my boss was a sniper?" They had come, HE had come to save her, he had found her, and now she was free.
"Let's go home." Yes, home to the only family she had, home to the only people who believed she was still alive, home to those who truly loved her.
Sitting in the plane back to D.C., her head resting on his shoulder, she was reciting a sentence over and over again, Couldn't live without you, I guess. And she smiled, realizing that she couldn't live without him either.