It was Valentine's Day and Leroy Jethro Gibbs met Dallas at the door wearing a dark suit, with grey shirt and striped tie. Dallas Hunter walked in the front door of Gibbs' home and froze at the site. She backed out the front door, checking the number and then walked back into the house.
"You're in the right place, smart ass," Gibbs said. "And, you've got 45 minutes to get ready. We've got dinner reservations at 6:30 in Baltimore."
"Are you alright?" Dallas asked seriously, slipping off her service weapon and jacket.
"You're now down to 42 minutes. You wanna argue or do you want me to leave without you?"
She gave him a quizzical look only to have Gibbs check his watch. "40 minutes."
"Fine!" And she ran up the stairs to quickly shower and dress. When she came back down the stairs with five minutes to spare it was Gibbs who was amazed.
Dallas wore a short black dress that revealed long, firm legs clad in black hose and heels, carrying a small bag. It was Gibbs' turn to look stunned. "Damn, woman, you do clean up nice."
It was her turn to look at her watch, "Didn't you say 6:30?"
He smiled, held open the door and the two left the house.
The restaurant was an expensive French affair that Dallas had read several reviews on. She looked in awe, again, at the man sitting beside her. "Are you sure you're alright?"
He smiled as the valet opened the doors to let them both out. They were seated promptly and the server took the order immediately.
Dallas reached across to take Gibbs' hand. "You ready to explain?"
He smiled, turning his hand over to more firmly take Dallas' in his, "I'm obviously not much of a romantic but I wanted to do something special…something to…"
But before he could finish his statement, their server brought their appetizer and placed it in the middle of the table. As he leaned over, the edge of his jacket caught the holster of a weapon. Both agents saw what occurred, while the server quickly tried to cover the faux pas. Dallas and Gibbs smiled as if nothing happened, allowing their waiter to bid a hasty retreat.
"Tell me you saw that?" Gibbs questioned, as he pulled his backup piece from his leg holster and secured his badge to his belt.
Dallas nodded, "Looks like there's a second one by the kitchen."
Gibbs dropped his napkin and when he picked it up he made the same shooter Dallas did. "Yep. Gotta weapon?"
"Backup in my handbag, along with my badge."
"There's a family back by the restrooms. They need to be cleared." Gibbs instructed.
Dallas nodded her agreement, "Got it. Watch your back."
"You, too," was Gibbs' last instruction.
Dallas excused herself from the table, taking her handbag. She stopped by the family, seated near the back and, kneeling down, flashed her identification to the parents.
"My name is Dallas Hunter. I'm an agent with the FBI. Without raising alarm, I'd like for you to take your kids and secure yourselves in the restroom."
"Are we in danger?" The father asked.
"I can't say for sure, sir. It's just precaution."
The man nodded and grabbed his son, taking him into the men's restroom. The woman did the same with her daughter, Dallas following behind. Once inside the women's lavatory, Dallas pulled her badge on the loop over her head, checked her piece, chambering a round and, then, slipped off her heels. Pulling her cell from her bag, she handed it to the lady.
"Stay in here and, if…" Dallas paused then continued, "and if anything sounds amiss, dial 9-1-1."
The woman nodded her head, placing a hand on Dallas' arm, "Please, be careful."
Dallas smiled. "Always," And quietly slipped out the bathroom door.
As Dallas eased her way around the corner, she heard the first rapport of automatic fire. She entered the dining room to chaos - women were screaming, tables were being overturned with glass, china and silverware hitting the floor in a cacophony of sound. Gibbs was engaged with a shooter Dallas couldn't see. Her first open shot was their server. She also quickly spotted the man who had been by the kitchen, taking him out with another single shot. Through the din, she heard Gibbs yell and watched as he pointed his weapon at her head. Dallas ducked as more gunfire echoed around her. When she looked, she saw Gibbs on the floor across from her. She quickly crossed only to be met with angry blue eyes.
"Towards the kitchen, Dallas, now," Gibbs ordered.
She paused, "You're hurt."
"I'm fine!" He yelled back as the room still echoed with screams and, now, crying, "Don't let him get away."
She didn't wait any longer, but took off across the dining room, oblivious to the damage being done to her bare feet. She slowly entered the kitchen, only to have a shot whiz by her head. She rounded the corner, seeing another waiter reloading his gun. Dallas squeezed off two shots in rapid succession, not sure if either found its intended mark. She heard the clatter of pots and pans and the workers cussing as the man ran past. Dallas followed as quickly as possible, but couldn't catch up with the last shooter.
By the time she returned to the dining room, the streets echoed with sirens. People were frantically checking the well being of their loved ones. Dallas crossed to Gibbs, surprised not to see him, at least, sitting up. It was then she noticed the blood pool slowly starting to form.
"Gibbs?' She asked, but got no answer. She knelt down and quickly felt for a pulse. It was there but faint and Dallas finally began to panic, "Jethro!" She shook him - hard - and his eyes fluttered open. Yelling at him, "Damn it, Jethro. You better hold on." And she started trying to stem the blood.
The cavalry hit the door at that point: Baltimore Police, paramedics and fire fighters. One team came at Dallas' frantic call. But, when they started trying to work on Gibbs, they couldn't get her out of the way. It was only when a familiar voice cut through the din that Dallas moved.
"Get your ass out of the way, Hunter," was Fornell's quietly spoken order. Dallas looked up into the familiar face and pushed back, allowing the medics to do their work. Tobias knelt down beside his agent and his friend. Dallas looked at her boss.
"How'd you know to come?"
He smiled, "Got a call from the bathroom."
Dallas smiled back but it quickly faded as she watched the men wheel Jethro into an ambulance. She then looked down at herself and realized she was covered in blood.
"Are you hurt, Hunter?" Tobias asked.
She looked up as if only just realizing that she, too, had been in a gun battle. "I don't know, Boss."
Tobias whistled for two more paramedics. They quickly checked over the FBI agent and discovered she was injured. They bundled her into the next ambulance, with Fornell next to her, and whisked her off to hospital.