Author's Note: Hello wonderful readers, I will try to make this brief. Firstly warnings for: adult language, explicit violence, torture scenes, PTSD, implied/vaguely written sexual assault. In summary use your common sense, this story is about Ziva rejoining Mossad, her mission to Somalia, her imprisonment, her rescue and her recovery. Think about what most likely happened in Somalia, that is what I have written. I have tried not to write the most sensitive subjects in detail, but sometimes it is unavoidable. A note on the Hebrew, it would be a waste not to use my knowledge of the Hebrew language in a story featuring Israel and Israelis, but I will try to limit it. I will either use it in a way that context makes it clear what is said, or add translations. I sincerely hope you like this, I have been writing in since last November! It is a complete re-write of my two previous Somalia stories, better, longer, and in more detail. I'm a sensitive author, so please review to let me know how I'm doing. Also if you log in when you review, I do take the time to answer all reviews with questions or just to say thank you.

Chapter One- Separation

sep·a·ra·tion
ˌsepəˈrāSH(ə)n/
noun
noun: separation
1.
the action or state of moving or being moved apart.
"the damage that might arise from the separation of parents and children"
synonyms: disconnection, detachment, severance, dissociation, disunion, disaffiliation,segregation, partition

The cars pulled up on the cold tarmac landing strip, and they emerged into the fierce Israeli wind before grabbing their bags. Tony and Gibbs in one car, Ziva, Vance and Eli in another. Ziva stood still for a moment as she watched them all walk away, needing a moment to gather her thoughts. The wind howled quietly, almost like weeping. She could not hear the conversation but watched as her father, Eli, gratefully accepted something from Vance, was it an SD card? She did not know nor care. She pretended to busy herself with unloading her back but watched from the corner of her eye, Eli pocketed the item and they stood still for a second. Vance shook his hand and got on the plane. Ziva never fully understood the relationship between them, she didn't ask as at Mossad you do not ask, you do what you are told and you follow the orders that you are given. Eli threw a glance at Ziva before he sauntered back to the car, she glanced over at Gibbs who had just slung his bag over his shoulder ready to board the American aircraft. Eli and Gibbs stared at each other, it was serious and full of subtext but it could not be called a glare, they held it for a moment both walking in opposite directions. Ziva knew that Gibbs judged Eli, and probably hated him a little too, most likely because of how similar they were. They both had rules to live by, Eli's were just a little more questionable than Gibbs', like his morals.

"Gibbs!" Ziva shouting running over to join him, her father watched curiously from the car as he slipped on his sunglasses, perhaps to make his interest less evident. It was sunny, but not enough to need sunglasses, if anything a wind-breaker would've been more necessary.
"Plane leaves in five minutes, Ziva." His stone face showed no emotion, no matter how hard Ziva tried to read him.
"Not without us it doesn't." She replied bluntly, Gibbs knew she was right. Not without him anyway.
"I think it is best if I simply speak from the heart." She looked him in the eye, trying to ignore the stray hairs that the wind forced over her face. Speaking from the heart is never an easy thing, especially for her, and especially to Gibbs.
"Well yeah," Gibbs nodded, "Usually is." He was trying his best to sound apathetic, disinterested like he wasn't concerned for what she was about to say, his face was a mask, A stone mask.
"It's Tony." She brushed a hair from over her eyes and continued. "I am still not convinced that he has been about Michael's…" She could not bring herself to call him that any more, it is too personal. "Rivkin's shooting." Though she tried to shake the thoughts from her head, the image of his bloody body flashed before her. She could still feel his blood on her hands, her clothes stained with his life.
"He gave you his word." Gibbs would never doubt Tony for a second, though it was no secret they both disliked Rivkin, Tony more so, he would never have killed him without just cause.
"I am not sure that we can we can work together. Perhaps it is best if one us...is transferred to another team." Gibbs' face immediately made her regret her honesty. He cocked an eyebrow.
"Transferred?" Ziva didn't know what to say to explain, she didn't want to leave NCIS but at the same time she could not work with DiNozzo. Their team dynamic had been ruined, no more witty banter in the midst of drama, no more jokes and sexual innuendo. It had all vanished the moment she heard the gunshots from her apartment
"I need to be able to trust the people that I work with. I know you, more than anyone, understands that." Ziva said as she thought back to the beginning of it all…

Ziva raced the streets in her mini ignoring the angry drivers beeping horns. She barely ever hit another car anyway, drive fast, move when things are in the way. Simple. She pressed the call button for Hadar and put it on speakerphone. Immediately she was re-directed to the switchboard.
"I need to speak to Officer Hadar. Now!" She turned another corner and cursed at the traffic. Michael was at her apartment, but he needed to leave soon, for his own good.
"Please authenticate." An unknown man asked her. She swerved to avoid another car.
"Mossad Officer, Ziva David. Authentication code, GIMMEL VAV CHET SHIN." She drove straight till she hit a red light.
"Shalom Officer David." Hadar said formally, Ziva's call having been put through.
"We need a forced extraction, now." She said getting straight to the point.
"Target?"
"Michael."
"Rivkin? Have you notified your father?" Hadar asked concerned, he does not want to go behind the Director's back especially with his daughter.
"I'm notifying you." She raised her voice slightly to convey authority. "Who do we have in the area?"
"How bad?" Ziva ignored his question, glancing around at the traffic.
"Who do we have?" She repeated annoyed.
"I will handle it." Ziva did not like the sound of that but it was the best she was going to get and it would keep Michael safe.

"He is at my apartment, I will make sure he stays there." The light turned green finally and she sped off towards her home.
"Someone will be sent." Hadar hung up and Ziva turned onto her street before haphazardly 'parking'.
She climbed out of her mini and froze at seeing Tony's car, a million questions raced through her mind but they were halted at the sounds of crashing. She looked up to her window and through the curtains she could see the silhouettes struggling. Another crash, followed by a man's grunt that sounded Michael. She raced up the stairs and less than seconds from her door she heard three gunshots in close succession. She pulled her gun from the holster and opened the door. Unable to comprehend the image before her she continued to aim her gun at Tony who had his gun pointed at her also. Ziva took it all in and saw Michael lying face down on the floor, she holstered her gun and Tony sat up and moved away. She paid him no attention, but focussed on Rivkin who was shot, bleeding, dying. She rolled him over and Michael wheezed.
"Oh my god…" She gasped at the sight, he'd coughed up blood, his chest was soaked with it, everywhere around him too. Quickly she placed her hands on his chest and applied pressure to try and stop the bleeding. It was useless.
"Come on Michael." She ordered him. He raised his hand and gripped her wrist.
"Ziva…" He raised his head slightly to look at her face. "I'm sorry." He continued to cough and wheeze. She spun her head round to Tony who was sat clutching his arm.
"Call an ambulance!" She yelled angrily, Tony had never heard her use that tone of voice with him before. It was obvious whose side she was on and Tony would never convince her otherwise. "NOW!" She screamed at him. Tony looked at her in shock and rage, she did not care at all that he was injured, she had not even noticed. It was all about Michael. "Stay with me, come on…"

Gibbs glanced at Eli and back to Ziva, her face is filled with sadness, but also a tiny bit of hope. The hope he would sadly have to crush, he could not choose, she had already chosen for him by asking. He leans in and kisses her on the cheek, for a second she is confused and pulls away.
"Take care of yourself." Eli smiles and gets into the car, as Gibbs boards the plane. She still had time, she could run after Gibbs and apologise, but she would not do that. She could not. The words echo in her head as she watches him sit down on the military aircraft.
"One short?" She hears Tony ask casually, clearly he did not care either. She had lost everyone, Gibbs, Tony, Michael. Three more names to add to her ever growing list.
"Good to go." Gibbs shouts at the crew member and the door to the plane is closed. The engines were loud and unrelenting, it deafened her. The plane lifted from the tarmac and Ziva watched sadly as her life faded before her eyes. The military aircraft grew smaller in the sky as the people she considered to be her friends disappeared. The wind swept her hair over her face, but through the wild mane she saw her father smile knowing he had his daughter back. It was, as her father had called it, her Aliyah.
She was home but at the same time she was not, NCIS had been her home for several years and it would be a challenge to return to Mossad. She had never been one to back down from a challenge, and perhaps it was best, she still did not know the truth about Rivkin. Tony had clearly been jealous, and it wouldn't be the first time he had done something questionable, and even if his report had been true he did not have to shoot Michael. Her Michael. An image flashed before her mind, the blue and white spread across his metal coffin, the flag they had given to her after he was buried. She did not want it, it only served as a reminder, and practically speaking, what was she supposed to do with an oversized Israeli flag? The plane had completely gone now, covered by the clouds in the Tel-Aviv sky, "Lehitraot…" she said whispering goodbye. Ultimately it had been her decision, her fault, the moment she asked Gibbs to choose. She knew he would not choose her, and yet only five minutes before she had asked him to do that...

Ziva walked over and got into the car, Eli had opted to drive so she clambered into the passenger seat and the Mossad operative drove the other car back for them. The journey was silent. Until then she had never understood the phrase 'deafening silence'. It was clear Eli wanted to say things but was holding it back. He was afraid of hurting her, he knew she would be delicate because of them leaving. She stared out the window watching Tel-Aviv roll by, the heat, the noise, everything she associated with home. Though she hadn't grown up in Tel-Aviv, she still considered it to be a home, it was the true place she was raised. When her mother and father separated, Eli left and, Tali, and her lived with her mother. Rivka was a kind, beautiful, woman, all of her qualities which were passed onto Talia. Ziva however seemed to have inherited the best qualities of her mother like Talia, but they were sadly dominated by her father's cruel genetic contributions. When Talia, and Ziva lived with their mother they rarely saw Eli until the time came when Ziva had enough. She refused to be apart from her father any longer and went to join Mossad, just like Ari had. Ari had been much older than her, and in Mossad for several years before yet she was promoted ahead of him. Though she out-ranked him as his control officer, she always looked to him for guidance. It seemed strange to look back and reflect on how much faith she used to have in Ari. Her brother. Who she shot. She shook her head as if to shake the thoughts from her head and opened the window to feel the cool Israeli breeze that somehow managed to make her forget everything.

Eli didn't need to show ID at the gates, he was the Director of Mossad, the guard however did take note of Ziva's presence. Not vocally but the look was clear confusion. Eli wasn't dim, he knew there was talk in Mossad especially about his family since Ari. A constant murmur of chatter about his 'American daughter' roamed the halls, but now she was back the murmur would be immensely worse. He drove right past the checkpoint and they parked in the underground car park. Eli opened her door for her, a kind gesture, but odd.
"Toda." She thanked him in their native tongue. He smiled at her before opening his mouth, he closed it again, unsure of what to say.
"Ziva.." He said quietly locking the car.
"Aba?" Father. It felt odd to call him that, their affection for each other was complicated at the best time, but now...Well it would not be easy.
"Bo'i iti." He said in Hebrew, swallowing his words, gesturing her to follow, he lead them both up towards his office. The walk only took a few minutes, they took the elevator instead of the lift, Eli's office was of course on the top floor. He was the top. Eli opened the door and she followed in after him and looked in surprise at the man already occupying in the office.
"I asked him to wait for us," Eli explained in Hebrew. To Ziva it was odd to hear so much of her native language having been in America for years. "I have information for both of you regarding your next mission. Sit." He orders Ziva as if she is a child and she glares before remembering her place. Bother officers look up at Eli and wait for him to continue. "For years now Mossad has been tracking Saleem Ulman, the man responsible for the deaths of many innocent civilians in Israel, and some of our own people." Ziva knew his name, she cursed it each night before she went to bed. For all intents and purposes he had killed her sister, Talia. Whilst he was not Hamas, he provided the bomb, he orchestrated the whole event. 116 dead, but only one she cared about. She had been there when the blast went off, along with several other Mossad officers...

"TALI!" She shouted pushing her way through the people not caring if she hurt anyone. Where was she? Ziva should have never allowed it, to travel on her own, she may have been 16 but she had the innocence and naivety of a 6 year old. There was chaos all around her, the police tried to calm the crowds but the people stampeded away from the bus station for fear of their lives. The bomb threat was real, and so was the terror. She climbed up on a chair desperately trying to spot her sister amongst the blur. Tali had been getting the bus to visit Ziva, Eli and Ari in Tel-Aviv as she was still living with their Ima at that time. Rivka had said it was fine, that Talia could handle getting a bus by herself as long as Ziva met her when she got off. Across the crowds she saw the Mossad searching bags, but at that moment she was not with Mossad so she did not offer to help. All that mattered was her sister. In the corner of her eyes she spotted her, Tali's face was partly covered by her long wavy hair but Ziva was certain. Tali stood in the corner trying not to be trampled and Ziva could see the concern etched on her face. She waved but she didn't look out. With her hands cupped round her mouth to add volume she shouted across the room, 'TALIA!'. The young girl looked up and smiled at her sister in relief. Ziva got off the chair and made her way over when suddenly she was thrown back by the force of the blast. She landed hard on the floor hitting her head, she clambered up dizzy thinking of nothing but her sister. Ziva's face was bleeding and there was debris covering her from the fallen ceiling tiles.
"Ziva, we need to get out there might be another bomb." Malachi said from behind, she didn't even realise he had been there.
"No! Tali!" She couldn't think straight, but she wasn't leaving. Malachi looked over trying to spot Ziva's sister, and he did. She was lying on the ground crushed by a support pillar, her eyes were open and there was blood running out her mouth. She was motionless and he knew it was too late.
"Ziva we need to go now! COME ON!" He tried pulling her by the arm but she shook him off and she rushed to her sister.
"Tali...please Tali, come on. WAKE UP! Tali! Please don't leave me…" Her salty tears dripped down and mixed with her blood. It was too late, she was gone but Ziva still wouldn't let go. She tried to cradle her body as best as she could with the pillar in the way. She whispered into her ear choking on her tears.
"Ziva. I gave you an order. We're going." Malachi barked at her. It didn't matter, Ziva thought, they could fire her for all she cared. Kill her. None of it mattered. Malachi and another Mossad officer, whose name she never knew, grabbed her and lifted her up dragging her away.
"I can't leave her! PLEASE! Get off me! Please, please, stop, let me go…" Her attempts were futile so she gave up, and let them drag her away, her body limp and heavy in their arms. The tears persisted but they were silent. Just like Tali….

"But we have been unsuccessful. Finding Saleem is impossible." Ziva said hopelessly
"Until now," Eli replied. He removed the flash drive from his cotton jacket and hands it to Malachi. "This has all of the information pulled from Abin Tabal's laptop, including the current location of his training camp in Somalia." Malachi showed Ziva on his laptop, and true to his word, it was all there. GPS coordinates, photos, maps, everything needed to kill that ben kelev. Malachi shut the laptop lid and focussed his attention back to Director David.
"I am trusting you, two of my finest agents, to do what is necessary." Eli did not need to give them further instruction, they were Kidon, their task was simple. Destroy the camp, kill Saleem.
"Yes sir." They said in unison. Ziva and Malachi looked at each other before leaving to plan the mission. They spent the following hours in Malachi's apartment planning the logistics of their operation with another member of Mossad, Aviv Holtz. Aviv would be there as backup, the muscle, Malachi and Ziva were the main officers attached to this case. Ziva did not know Aviv well but he seemed good enough, he was no Tony but as far as backup he would do.
"I know a man named Daniel Shalev, he can get us to Saleem's camp." Malachi told them both laying down a piece of paper with Shalev's contact information on it. "As long as we pay him more than Saleem he can be trusted."
"I do not like this Malachi, what if he warns Saleem." Ziva said, Aviv was silent but it was clear he agreed.
"It doesn't matter. He won't but even if he does Saleem is no match for Mossad." Ziva bit her tongue, Malachi was head of the Kidon unit. She would need to learn to follow orders again, she was so out of practice it would be difficult. "We'll meet him at Eilat and cross the border to Jordan. From there we take the same ship as Saleem's goods."
"Which is?" Aviv asked quietly.
"The Damocles, out of the port of Aqaba bound for Mogadishu. Once we reach Somalia we will pay the courier to take us to Saleem's camp." Malachi put down more slips of paper including maps with their route marked. The next hour was used to plan their attack once they reached Saleem's camp, after that Aviv went home. Ziva and Malachi continued their preparations long into the night, they packed their supplies, plenty of US dollars, and of course their weapons and ammunitions. Having not been living in Israel Ziva had nowhere to stay so she slept on Malachi's sofa overnight. They would fly to Eilat in the morning, they could not waste anymore time Saleems camp could be relocated at anytime.

Both Malachi and Ziva were up at 04:30. Ziva took the first shower, and spent longer than usual not knowing when her next shower would be. When she stepped out she towel dried her hair and pulled it back into a tight ponytail, in the Israeli heat it would dry quick enough on it's own. She dressed practical as always, cargos and a black top followed by her military boots. Whilst Malachi took his shower she had some coffee and a banana before double checking everything in her backpack. It was hardest when she was alone, when she was busy with things and people she could forget. Forget the pain in her heart when she remembered NCIS. In the beginning she could sense their dislike, all but Jenny were displeased at her replacing Agent Todd. Slowly she had earned her place, and she liked to think of them as family. It was a shame the feeling was not mutual, Gibbs had not trusted her judgement with Rivkin, neither had Tony. Gibbs had left her. Every minute her feelings changed, she was mad at herself, she was mad at them, it was hard to keep everything straight. What she did know though was that she missed them. Ziva thought back to her first day, she had gotten there at 05:00 the time she believed they started work. In Israel working days start earlier because it is so hot by the afternoon it is harder to work, but Mossad started especially early and she assumed NCIS to be the same. She waited patiently, playing with her knife, cleaning her guns, tying her hair up and then taking it back down. It wasn't till 07:00 that someone finally arrived. Someone that wasn't a cleaner, or an intern that is.

The ding of the elevator, that would become very familiar to her, sounded his arrival. She could hear the whir of an electric shaver and Tony DiNozzo walked past. Tony had been the first person she met at NCIS, and now he was the first person she would come across officially in her new job. He clearly had not noticed her presence.
"Frickin' hate Mondays…" He groaned throwing his bag by his desk and taking off his jacket to reveal a white vest underneath. The man wasn't even dressed much to her disgust, who would come into work so unprofessional? "Frickin' five hours all you can eat burrito shack…" He muttered to himself opening a desk drawer. "More like five hour bacteria shack." He poured water into a cup and stirred it with his toothbrush, his other hand draping a towel across his shoulder. "Shouldn't have come into work today." He started to brush his teeth and stopped abruptly when he was interrupted. "If Gibbs sees me like this-"
"He'll probably be as horrified as I am. Agent DiNozzo." She finished his sentence trying her best not to look at him as he glanced over his shoulder with the brush still hanging out his mouth. Ziva leaned forward and pursed her lips with her eyebrows raised, "Working undercover as a hobo?" She smiled and Tony just stared.
"Mind telling me...eh, what you're doing here again?" Tony took the toothbrush out and looked at her confused. Ziva huffed and shrugged her shoulders slightly as if exasperated.
"Erm...waiting."
"For what?" Ziva didn't realise until then Tony had no idea. With his bedhead and stubble, and general state of uncleanliness that was evident. He'd flirted enough with her on their first encounter for her to know he made an effort around women. Had he known there would be a woman on the team he would not be so...worn.
"To start work." She replied as if it were obvious, almost like she was trying to rile him. She was. "Does everyone always come in this late?"
"It's 07:00!"
"At Mossad we start at 05:00." She smiled again and she could tell Tony was wound.
"Okay." He shut the filing cabinet and stood up, throwing the towel from his shoulder onto the floor. "Let me rephrase the original question." He said walking over to her. "What the hell are you doing here Ziva?"
"I see." She stood up and faced him. "Gibbs didn't tell you." She smirked a little, to mock the fact he was out of the loop.
"Tell me what." He sighed loudly, tired of her crypticness and games.
"Mossad's assigned me to NCIS as a 'Liaison Officer'. We're going to be working together."

Malachi walked into the main area of his apartment and grabbed his bag, they were ready to leave. He turned the lights off and they headed out to the taxi outside. The drive to the airport was short, Aviv met them there and checked in their bags, there were no problems with their luggage regardless of its questionable nature. Mossad agents could get through security with bags stuffed with cash and weapons and no one would care. Malachi and Aviv sat together on the flight, Ziva opted to sit alone. It gave her time to reflect on everything, it had been a long time since she had been on a mission like this, and even longer since the main aim was to kill someone. Was it murder? Perhaps, but she sure as hell knew Saleem deserved it. She didn't care about anything but putting a bullet through his head, it was an unspoken agreement between Ziva and Malachi that she would be the one to kill him. There wasn't much turbulence and the flight was smooth, she refused the inflight food that rolled down the centre of the plane on a trolley at extortionate prices. She looked out of the window and watched as she passed above her homeland, they were too far up to see the buildings let alone the people. Behind her she heard Malachi and Aviv discussing their plan when they landed, she listened but kept quiet as they talked about Shalev.