Summer of '46
A Halloween story involving our friends from NCIS.
I do not own NCIS or any part thereof.
Summer of '46
-1-
Ziva did not know why she had let Abby talk her into this. Of all the stupid things she had done since coming to NCIS this had to take the pie. At 11:45 on a moonless Halloween night she sat with Abby and McGee in what was supposed to be a haunted house waiting for the ghostly spirits to materialize. Tony was supposed to join them but Gibbs had finally come down on him about his overdue paperwork and Tony had had to complete his most delinquent reports before leaving for the weekend.
Abby had set up rows of black and blood red candles in the room where they sat on the floor. The flickering light made the walls appear to move and her friends' faces were only half visible. Ziva saw Abby take something out of the large bag she had brought with her.
"Here, Timmy, set up the Ouija board. I can't wait to start. This is going to be so cool! It'll be midnight in 10 minutes. We need to start right on the dot of midnight!"
Ziva took the opportunity to look around the room they had chosen. It was what Abby called the parlor. From Abby's shared research Ziva knew the house had been built in the 1880s by a large family. The last member of the family had finally died in the 1930s and the house had been broken down into apartments. However, shortly after WW II the house had gotten the reputation of being haunted and it became harder and harder to find renters. The house had basically been abandoned since the 50's. Abby had found it listed on a site about haunted houses in the D.C. greater metropolitan area. She swore it had to be really haunted because not even the homeless so prevalent in the D.C. area would spend more than one night there.
Ziva could understand why. Not only had she had the vague feeling she was being watched since walking through the door but it was cold in here. Not chilly. Chilly was outside where it was a pleasant autumn night. The cold was here in this dark room with only the tiny release of heat provided by Abby's candles. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms, wishing she'd worn somethinga little heavier than her favorite hoodie.
Abby and Tim were arguing about the placement of the board. Ziva thought longingly of her bed. A glass of wine, a few chapters of READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN and she could have been in bed sleeping by now. Her days started at 0500 even on the weekends and if she left now she would barely get 4 hours sleep by the time she made the drive home and showered. She sighed and wished Abby's ghosts would appear so she could leave.
Suddenly she reached for her gun. She wasn't even aware she'd done so for a half second. She stood up and faced away from McGee and Abby looking down a hallway leading out of the room toward the back of the house. A woman stood there looking at her. She had on a dark blue suit or uniform. Her hair was short, dark and curly and her skin pale, shimmering in the slight glow from the candlelight that reached the doorway. She beckoned Ziva toward her. Ziva took a step or two in her direction. The woman turned and walked down the hallway. Ziva took another step and then she heard a woman scream. She yelled McGee's name and then took off after the mystery woman.
Tim McGee heard the woman scream and his head jerked up. Then he heard Ziva call his name and run off with her gun pulled from its holster. He jumped up, Abby by him and as he drew his gun a breeze blew through the broken glass of the windows in the parlor and the candles went out.
He knelt back down and felt around on the floor until he found the flashlight he'd brought with them. He flicked it on and shined it toward the hallway where he'd last seen Ziva.
"Ziva," he called and waited for a response.
He tried again louder. "Ziva!"
In response he heard an ominoussilence.
"ZIVA!" he yelled again to no response.
"Oh crap," Abby said.