Gibbs and Ziva, drove over to the Colonels house. He had to see for himself. Gibbs knocked on the door.

"Sir….Gibbs, NCIS," as he showed his ID, "May we come in?"

"Of course." as he opened the door fully.

"Sir, this property," Gibbs started to say, "Is not your usual service accommodation?"

"No…my wife Mary," as Ziva gasped, "She had a legacy. She didn't want just anything, she wanted character. This house was for our retirement too."

"You were on vacation sir," Ziva started to say, "But your wife has been dead 14 days, where and what happened."

"A couple days into our vacation, Mary got a call, saying a relative had died and that the lawyer wanted to see her. I drove her home, we stayed and then I returned in the morning to the chalet. Told her to call me when it had been finalised."

"And Sir?" Ziva asked.

"She didn't, but sometimes she went awol, for a few days. It was when I was in Afghanistan, she got used to being with her girl friends."

"So you weren't unduly worried?" Gibbs now questioned.

"No Sir I wasn't. But when she didn't answer my calls or her cell, I came home to find…."

"Could we have a look around?" Gibbs now asked.

Ziva shivered, she thought she saw a green mist move across the room.

"But of course." the Colonel replied.

"Sir, did anyone see you return with your wife?" Ziva asked.

"We came home late, it was dark."

Gibbs nodded.

As they searched the house Gibbs thought he got the hint of fresh paint.. In the living room, the walls were all white.

"Being doing a little renovation Sir?" he asked as he thought where the wall was in relation to the outside chimney. The TV cabinet right up against the wall, the TV hiding something? He saw the grating at the floor. What had been the fireplace. He wondered what was behind the TV.

"Yes Mary," as Ziva shivered again and looked across at a figure that so reminded her of herself, "Had wanted period features, but in this room, she wanted a modern look. Minimalist," Colonel Franklin replied, "So we removed the fire place and bricked up." Ziva gasped, and looked at Gibbs.

"Thank you Sir." as they turned to leave the house.

"What you thinking Ziva?" Gibbs asked as they sat in the car.

"Mary was there, she says danger."

Gibbs applied for a warrant and returned to the Colonels house.

"Gibbs," the Colonel said opening the door, "I hope you have some further developments on my wife's murder."

"That we do… may we come in Sir. And we have this." flashing the warrant. The Colonel stood amazed.

"But of course." he answered.

Gibbs went straight to the TV, and what had been the fire place. He removed the TV from the wall. A safe had been made.

"The key Sir?" he asked.

The Colonel handed Gibbs the key, Ziva saw him pale slightly, he fingered his collar.

"Bit hot Sir?" she enquired.

Gibbs took the key and opened the safe. Nothing.

"It was for personal things."

Gibbs wasn't convinced, something wasn't right. He tapped the base. He expected it to be hollow. Nope, the sound hard. Either there was something there, or the builders had bricked all the way up. No, no builder would have done that, ventilation. There had to be something else. He took his knife from his pocket, and slit the baize.

"Excuse me Agent Gibbs. Do you not realise how much that cost? What right do you have to come in here and vandalise peoples property?"

"When murder is involved, everything." he answered, as he ripped back the baize to reveal, a circular clasp. Gibbs looked at the Colonel and pulled the hook up. Wha he saw was brown packages. He picked one up, and slit the corner. A white powder ran to the floor.

Ziva watched the face of the Colonel go as white as the powder.

"How?…..when?….who?….how did you find out so soon?"

"You wife told us." Ziva answered.

"But she was dead before…." he didn't finish.

"Before you told us she had died." Ziva enquired.

"Yes. I thought I had it all sewn up. I was going to disappear. Die in Afghanistan. I had friends there." as he lurched to Ziva and grabbed her. He took a knife from his back pocket, "Back off Gibbs, or she dies too." holding the blade to her throat. What happened next was too quick for the Colonel, Gibbs threw some of the heroin into Franklins' face. He dropped the knife and rubbed his eyes. In a moment Ziva had him on the floor cuffed. As Gibbs pulled him up he shivered.

"Someone just walk over you grave Sir?"

"No," Ziva replied, "Mary's icy fingers telling him he lied to us." starring icily at him as she saw the green mist disappear into thin air.

The pair turned to see Tim and Tony standing in the door-frame.

"He's yours," Gibbs shouted as he led Ziva outside into the fresh air.

Epilogue.

They sat in the Directors Office. Vance had called a meeting. The Colonel had admitted killing his wife, and using a blow-up doll as a decoy in the car. He knew, late at night, the figure wouldn't have been made out properly. He managed to keep it all undercover. He was going back to Afghanistan, and he had friends in the Taliban. He was swapping guns for heroin. Being a supply Officer.

"Good work David. A little bit unethical. I mean not everyday we get help from beyond the grave."

"But good eh. Pity we don't get help like that more often. But then Abby would be out of a job." Tony had added.

"What was she like? What was Mary like?" Abby asked.

"Mary? An English Rose. Blonde, very pale. She did have rosy cheeks."

"That would have been the sea air Ziva." Dr Mallard had added.

"She was a bit like me. I suppose in a way. I mean I am a long way from my homeland, as was she. But you are my family now. And Mary says she has found hope."

"But Ziva what was it like to see a ghost?" Tim enquired.

"Strange. She wasn't really a ghost. She was me. I was she. She was someone who just popped into our world, our time."

"Never underestimate the dead." Gibbs replied, thinking Mexico.

"But this ghost Ziva. She was human?" Tony enquired frowning.

"Oh yes she was human…..is human….she will never die. She will seek out injustice on murders. Let's call her, NCIS of the spirit world."

They watched as the colour returned to Ziva's cheeks a pale pink. Gibbs thought he saw a green mist evaporate before them.

Ziva certainly did, "Shalom Maria." she whispered.