Chapter Two
Located in Foggy Bottom near the John F Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, the Watergate Complex included a hotel, office buildings, Condos, and apartments. It was a large white coliseum looking complex of five buildings. After NCIS, Tony decided to get lost for a while instead going right to the Watergate, he checked out some of his old haunts, had a few beers, and reconnected with a city that he thought he'd never leave. Finally, he took a cab to the Watergate.
Tony checked into his room, which was a few rooms down Michael's room. Michael had taken care of everything for him, including having his bags waiting for him in his hotel room. Even though he had his qualms about working with Michael, he had to admit he tried hard to be a good partner. Once he changed into black jeans, blue dress shirt, and grabbed his suede jacket, he decided to check out Michael and invite him to a jazz club in the U Street Corridor. Knocking on the door, Michael answered. He was wearing a towel around his waist and he looked like he just got through with exercising. Tony noticed the king size bed was messed up and a shower was running in the bathroom. The shower stopped.
"Come in, Tony," Michael said. "Where have you been?"
"Just get used to the DC again. I lived here for a lot of years before I went to Rota," he answered.
He heard Ziva's voice yell from the bathroom. She was speaking Hebrew to Michael. Tony didn't know if he felt sick to his stomach or something just died inside of him. All he knew was that he needed to get out of the room now. Wearing a hotel robe, Ziva exited the bathroom. She stopped dead when she saw Tony. Her eyes smoldered for a moment as she looked at him then they went cold.
"I was going to invite you out for a meal and few drinks, but I can see you are busy," Tony said.
"Wait here, let me shower then we can talk about going somewhere tonight," said Michael.
He walked past Tony slapping him on the shoulder as if they were buddies then he disappeared into the bathroom. Tony and Ziva just stared at each other. Once the shower went on, she spoke.
"You never said goodbye," she said.
"Since you had ended things between us, I didn't really think I had to say goodbye," Tony replied.
"Things were complicated back then. Many things were left unsaid that needed to be said, that I need to say," Ziva said.
She wanted to tell him the whole truth; she wanted to jump into his arms, but it wasn't the right moment. But, she wanted that moment to be now. She hadn't realized just how hard it was going to be to see him again.
"Things are complicated now, too. I'm the SAC of Rota one moment and the next I get shanghaied into an op I don't want to be part of with a Mossad agent you bends the elbow too much," said Tony.
"Bends the elbow too much?" asked Ziva slightly confused.
"He drinks too much. Watch him with that, keep a close eye on his drinking because I think he's on the edge, Ziva. He's drinking too much, making mistakes, and he got me involved when it should be someone from OSP," said Tony.
"He is Mossad. Michael is twice the man you are," she snapped, defending Michael. She had to defend him; she was sleeping with him.
The words left her mouth and she realized how similar what she said sounded like what she said about Gibbs to Tony. On instincts, she pulled out a verbal knife and stabbed. There was a part of her that wanted to scream for being so defensive, for being the good Mossad officer defending Mossad. She saw his sea green eyes darken. It was too late to apologize, as she had drawn first blood. He was angry and she remembered that when Tony was angry you didn't try to explain yourself because he stopped listening.
"Tell Mikey, I'm not in the mood to be a useless, Non-Mossad third wheel. Tell him I went to get some food and then get laid. I'll talk to him tomorrow," he growled.
He turned and headed for the door. His hand went on the knob when he heard Ziva say his name softly. He didn't bother to turn around but walked out.
Ziva stood there. She closed her eyes and wondered why she kept hurting the man she loved. Michael started to sing some song in Hebrew in the shower. She walked over to the side of the bed and sat down and thought about what Tony had said. When she arrived, Michael had been drinking and it wasn't just one drink, either. She needed to talk to Officer Bashan at the embassy or maybe call Hadar in Israel. Tony just might be right and Michael was on the verge of burnout.
NCIS
Tony woke up with a blond young woman, whose name he didn't know in bed with him. His head ached and he had to wonder whom he was trying to punish last night Ziva or himself. He had stopped the meaningless one-nighters after his first six months in Rota when it seemed he had slept with half the eligible women there.
"Morning," the blond said.
She was attractive and about twenty-six years old. He scanned the clothes on the floor to see jeans, nice blouse, but not too expensive, a sweater. There was a black leather backpack instead of a pocket book. He guessed grad student.
"Don't you have classes this morning?" he smiled.
"You remembered," she purred.
Years of screwing around and screwing up had honed his morning after skills. He kissed her forehead.
"Why don't you shower first and I'll order us some room service," he said.
"I'd like that," she said.
She got out of bed not bothering to grab a sheet or clothes. He had to admit that she had a good body. It was no wonder why he zeroed in on her. Grabbing his jeans, he put them on then checked her bag for ID. Her name was Janet Mills and she was a Georgetown grad student. He ordered them a lot of room service. He was hungry.
After she showered, he told her just to sign for the breakfast when it arrived then he went in to shower. Sticking his head under a heavy stream of hot water was a great relief. His muscles relaxed and his mind started functioning properly again. Maybe his mind started function too well because he drifted into a memory.
"Ahuvi, you don't understand what it is like to be Mossad. We carry the defense of Israel on our shoulders. My father always told me I was the sharp need of the spear, which he used to keep our enemies away," Ziva told him. "We fail and innocent Israelis usually die."
His father told him that he was useless and he'd die in the gutter because he didn't want to follow in his footsteps. They were in her bed after having made love. For once, she was opening up to him.
"Zi, you're NCIS now not Mossad. You need to not be so tightly wound. Mistakes are going to be made. You're human," he told her.
She had screwed up and lost her temper with a suspect, who had goaded her into it. It came very close to being a case of brutality, which would have gotten him released. Ziva kept beating herself up over this, over losing control. Mossad officers didn't lose control. He knew how much having control meant to her, even when they were making love. She never really let herself go completely.
"I am still Mossad. I could be called away tomorrow to do the work of Israel," she said.
"I don't like hearing that, Zi. I don't want to lose you," he said.
She kissed him passionately.
"I do not want to lose you, Ahuvi," she said.
Tony let the memory get washed away with the shampoo. He turned off the shower and heard voices in the hotel room. Janet was talking to someone. Putting on his jeans, he grabbed a towel and toweled off his hair and upper body then exited with the towel over his shoulders. Michael was enjoying breakfast with Janet.
"Morning, Tony," he said with a grin. "I see you did as you said you would last night. You are a man of your word."
"What did you and Ziva end up doing?" he asked
"Ah, we went to dinner and got into a heated discussion then she told me to go back to the hotel and pleasure myself. She can be difficult," he smiled.
Tony walked over to the cart full of food and poured himself a coffee then grabbed a blueberry muffin. Michael was eating his bagel, lox, and cream cheese.
"Michael was telling me that you two are partners," Janet said.
"Yes, we are," agreed Tony.
"What kind of businessmen are you?" she asked.
"Successful, darling," answered Tony with his best movie star smile.
NCIS
Tony and Michael walked around the Smithsonian, not so much to take in the sights but to make sure that they weren't followed. They let the security of the Smithsonian work in their favor.
"Ziva said we should not see each other until this op is over. She said it was too risky," Michael said. "She can be frustrating. Do you believe she expects me to be faithful?"
"To be honest, Mike, I worked with her when I was in DC. I know she can be difficult," Tony agreed.
"Where you friends?" he asked.
"Not always," smiled Tony.
He thought about saying no, we were lovers, but he needed Michael if he was going to survive this op.
"Ziva can be difficult," said Michael. "After we talk business, I want a drink."
Tony looked at his wristwatch. It was noon and he was wanting to start drinking already. He needed to moderate him somehow.
"We'll get some lunch at a pub I know. How does that sound?" he asked
"Excellent," he said.
Food was a good moderator for alcohol.
"Etienne said he'd contact us. So we wait, stay clean, act like we are being watched, and then when he tests us we have to pass the test," said Tony.
"We will," Michael replied.
"What is this op building up to, Michael?" asked Tony.
"We are collecting names and information. Kidon units and Seal teams will clean up what we find out. This is a very dangerous network we are dealing with, Tony," said Michael.
"And this Jospin?" asked Tony.
"If I get close enough to him then I kill him," he said.
"I hope that come with an escape plan because I'll be standing beside you," said Tony.
"I hope so, too," smiled Michael.
NCIS
Two days into their stay at the Watergate, the call came into Tony's room. Etienne wanted to speak only to Tony. He was the brains.
"The US Army is developing Future Force Warrior. This includes weapons, battle armor that is an exoskeleton, physiological status monitoring subsystem, microclimate cooling and heating system, and power subsystem. We want the detailed specs on this," he said. "It can be sold for a tidy amount to rival countries."
"How long do we have?" asked Tony.
"Three weeks," he said.
"Budget?" Tony asked.
"We will reimburse whatever you spend if you get this and pay you a nice fee," said Etienne.
"How do I contact you?" Tony asked.
"Write this number down," he said then gave Tony the number and hung up.
Once he hung up the telephone, Tony fell back on the bed.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck," he moaned.
If this op was going to work, he needed to get the detailed specs of the Future Force Warrior. Supplying anyone other than the US DOD with these detailed specs could compromise the health of soldiers, yet he needed to do this. The best way to get these specs was either from MIT or from Berkeley where the systems were being designed or hack into the Pentagon. It looked like they were headed to Boston and MIT. He didn't want to deal with the Pentagon just yet.
Tony sat up and called Michael's room. He picked up.
"Etienne called me," Tony said.
"Finally, we can get this started," Michael said.
NCIS
They checked into a boutique hotel named the Eliot on Commonwealth Avenue. They got rooms on different floors as a security precaution. This would be the base of their operation while they worked on getting the Future Force Warrior specs. It was agreed by both of them that they needed a hacker to help with this op. Michael made a few phone calls.
"Tonight at nine o'clock at Shay's Pub on JFK Street. Our hacker is an MIT student from Israel, who has been told this is a matter of national security," said Michael.
"Oh, goody, we are coercing college students into helping us," sighed Tony. "I don't feel like a fucking fraud."
"We do what we must, Tony," said Michael. "Anyway, he is happy to do this. You see if now will not be expected to return to Israel and serve his country. He can stay in the US now, if he wants and that is what he wants."
"Okay, dress casual and try to be sober for this, Mikey," sighed Tony.
"You know I can hold my liquor," said Michael.
"You can hold your liquor, my liquor and everyone else's liquor. I just want you sober for this," he said.
"For you I'd do anything, partner," Michael smiled.
"Okay, Mickey," Tony smiled.
Shays was a college pub. The tables and chairs and décor just said that college kids drank there. Michael grabbed them a couple of beers from the tap and Tony sat down at a table. They weren't there ten minutes when their hacker showed up.
"So, are you going to buy me a burger and a beer?" was the first thing out of his mouth.
"Etan, behave or I'll tell you bother," said Michael.
"I am not Aaron. I am not Mossad material," he said with a smirk.
"You can do this hacking for us?" Michael asked.
"The system can't be hacked into because it is a stand alone. I need to get to a terminal attached to their system," he said.
"So, he has to come with us into MIT," Tony said.
Michael looked at him and nodded yes.
NCIS
It was a late night for Gibbs' MCRT. They were investigating the death of NIA Captain. Taking a break in the sturm und drang of dealing with Gibbs when he was on a rampage, Ziva grabbed her smartphone and disappeared to make a call. As she, left McGee was being chewed out for not having anything for Gibbs. It brought a smile to her face.
"Jesus, Ziva, I now understand why Stan Burly only lasted three years with Gibbs. I don't know how Tony did it. He not only took Gibbs rampages with ease, but he'd goaded Gibbs into focusing his temper on him and him alone sparing the rest of the team," McGee said.
"He protected us, McGee and we didn't even realize it," Ziva said.
"Yeah, well, I'm starting to miss him," McGee said.
She found a spot near Abby's lab and made her call.
"Hadar, we need to speak," she said in Hebrew.
"What is Ziva?" Amit Hadar sighed.
"Michael. He is drinking heavily and from what I can tell is near burnout. I'm not sure he should be on an important op," she told him.
"Too late to go back, Ziva. This Agent DiNozzo will have to look out for him because they have already in too deep. They are being tested by Maurice Jospin to see if he will add them to his procuring agents," Hadar said.
"They are going after Bonaparte," Ziva said feeling the anger start to build. It was bad enough that her father would send an agent on the verge of burnout on an important mission, but Tony was involved. He was trained for this kind of thing.
"You know this, DiNozzo, don't you?" Hadar asked.
"You know that I do," Ziva hissed.
"Let's hope he doesn't need our help," Hadar said.
"If he does then I want to be a part of it," Ziva said.
"We'll see," Hadar hung up.
Ziva took a deep breath. Thing were worse then she thought they were.
NCIS
Michael supplied Etan with the equipment he needed, which included a tablet-sized computer that allowed him to hack into the security system from the car. On Tony's insistence, Michael and he were armed with non-lethal weapons. Tony carried a Taser and blackjack and Michael carried a dart gun where the darts were dipped in a sedative.
"I've turned off all the alarms to the lab with the terminal we need," said Etan.
"And cameras?" asked Tony.
"They are on a loop," Etan said.
"Okay, let's go. I want to be in and out within fifteen minutes," said Michael.
With Etan coming up the rear, Tony and Michael efficiently made their way through the lab area following the route Etan had planned for them. Whenever they came on a guard, he was deposed off in a non-lethal way. The problem was that Tony noticed that Michael almost seemed to get off on the adrenaline of the situation, which made his actions a little too violent. It was almost as if he wanted the situation to fall apart and real violence to break out so that he could feel alive. He knew that he'd have to keep an eye on this, especially if he wanted to live.
Once they got to the terminal, Etan was able to get in and get the information in five minutes. He downloaded it into a thumb drive and then they were off. His reward for his help, Etan was allowed to keep the equipment Michael got for them. Tony and Michael returned to the Eliot Hotel.
Tony dialed the number that Etienne gave him.
"Paddington, I presume," a cultured voice said.
"Anthony Paddington," said Tony.
"You have the specs?" he asked.
"I am holding them in my hand on a thumb drive," said Tony.
"Excellent. You only took a few days instead of weeks. Logan Airport, private terminal. The Gulfstream is under my name, Maurice Jospin. Bring the thumb drive to me in Corsica. You just passed the test," Jospin hung up.
Tony looked at Michael: "We are going to Corsica."
Michael smiled.
"It's too early yet to kill Jospin, isn't it?" asked Tony.
"We need more intel first on his network. Maybe the third time we meet him then I'll kill," smiled Michael.
"Great," Tony said, as he started wondering for the fiftieth time why they hell was he still involved in this op.
