A/N: Since I'm gonna be extra busy tomorrow, you get the next chapter a day early. I loved the response to the prologue, I hope this new one doesn't disappoint.

I realized I forgot to thank a very important person in the previous one: the amazing JibbsGal1 who helps me and supports me more than I can say. :-D

Thanks for reading, alerting, favoriting and THANKS SO MUCH to left my heart, SherlockXHolmes23, JibbsShipper, Tony and Ziva forever and jstapny for their reviews.

As promised some answers and more questions, enjoy :-D

Chapter 1: Sister Agency

November 28th, 2008 8:00 am

NCIS Headquarters, Navy Yard, Washington D.C, United States

It had been almost three days and Ziva was waiting impatiently for some news from her contact in Paris. She couldn't shake out of her head the images of this Jenny look-alike. Sometimes she was sure it was her but, at other moments, she had doubts; she needed some certainty, she needed to know.

A courier put her out of her thoughts and gave her a large brown envelope; there was no return address but she recognized the handwriting. Pulling the photos and the notes out, she studied them carefully. She didn't know whether to be relieved and happy or not when she got the confirmation that the woman she had followed was indeed Jenny Shepard.

Sighing, she stood up and approached Gibbs' desk. Her Boss looked up briefly at her and settled his gaze on the folder she was holding. She gave it to him without saying a word.

She watched him closely as he looked at the pictures. Confusion then shock and disbelief settled on his face as he realized what he was looking at. She saw him trace a line on one of the pictures; one where Jenny's pregnant belly was clearly visible. Then, he raised his head sharply and looked at her. She was sure he was about to yell at her but Director Vance chose that moment to call them from the catwalk.

"Agent Gibbs, I want you, your team, Miss Sciuto, Doctor Mallard and Mr. Palmer, up in my office right now." The tone was serious and wasn't leaving any room for a discussion.

McGee called the lab and the autopsy suite since Gibbs was still in a staring contest with Ziva and didn't seem to have heard the Director.

It took the bubbly Goth's arrival to break the eye contact and Ziva rapidly put the photos out of sight.

The whole team could see that something was really wrong but they didn't dare to ask and followed Gibbs in silence.

They entered the Director's office and Vance didn't lose time with pleasantries.

"I just got a call from the CIA Director. He is asking for NCIS' assistance in a murder investigation of a Marine First Sergeant, working for the US Embassy, in Paris. This investigation could help wrap up an operation they're running, codename Lady Macbeth. He didn't tell me much more. You will be read in by CIA Agent Monica Stones, who is in charge of the op," he announced, giving them the picture of a blonde woman in her late thirties.

"We're going back to Paris?" Tony summed up; apparently it was the only thing he had retained from the speech and it earned him an headslap.

"Yes, Agent DiNozzo, you're going back to Paris and, this time, the whole team is coming too. SecNav is loaning you his jet. You're taking off in 45 minutes. The CIA Director also told me that Officer David should destroy the folder she received this morning. Is there something we should know?" Vance added, turning towards Ziva, not missing the look she and Gibbs exchanged.

"No, there is not, Director," Ziva answered and followed Gibbs, who was storming out of the room.

She entered the elevator just as the doors were closing. Gibbs waited for it to start its descent before flipping the switch.

"I saw her in Paris, well, I was not sure it was her. She walked past me when I was waiting for Tony. She was talking on the phone; I heard her voice and I followed her. I could not believe it! I took some pictures and I called an old friend at the Israeli Embassy, asked him to watch her, gather some information so I could be sure. They probably noticed him," Ziva explained, starring straight in front of her.

"You think she is working with the CIA," Gibbs stated.

"Well, they called the operation 'Lady Macbeth' and we do not believe in coincidence, do we?" Ziva replied.

Gibbs nodded and put the elevator back in motion.

"Gibbs …" Ziva started.

"Don't, Ziva, don't," Gibbs cut her off and the Israeli nodded.

Not wanting to put Gibbs in an even worse mood, the team sped up to pack their luggage and be at the airport in time. They didn't know what was going on between the Boss and Ziva but it was bad and seemed to have something to do with their trip. Tony had tried to extort something from Ziva but she had threatened him with castration and they could see she was serious.

The seven-and-a-half-hour trip was punctuated by Ducky's stories; Gibbs stayed away from the group, and even Abby didn't try to reach out to him.

November 28th, 2008 11:00 pm (Paris time)

United States Ambassador to France's residence, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris, France

As they exited Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, they found Agent Monica Stones leaning against a car, three stern looking men-in-black around her.

"Agent Stones," Gibbs greeted, shaking her hand.

"Agent Gibbs, thank you for coming so swiftly. I know all of this is a little cryptic but I assure you will receive all the necessary information. We're going to set you up at the Ambassador's residence; it's secure enough. I know you all probably want to rest but I really want to read you in as fast as possible, it's extremely important," the CIA Agent announced as the men who had accompanied her took their luggage.

They hopped in a Cadillac limousine and drove towards their destination.

Among the group, only Abby, McGee and Palmer had never been to Paris; they were fascinated by the city.

"I understand better why they call Paris the City of Lights," McGee exclaimed as they entered Paris by the Porte de Maillot and went up the Avenue de la Grande Armée towards the Arc de Triomphe.

"If you want to really discover Paris, you should always do it by night," Agent Stones said, smiling at the young agents' enthusiasm.

"Won't we see the Avenue des Champs-Elysées?" Abby asked, her face almost glued to the car's window.

"Not today, I'm afraid, but don't worry. You can't leave Paris without having seen the most beautiful avenue of the world," Monica reassured them.

Finally, they arrived at the Hotel de Pontalba, where the US Ambassador to France lived.

"My colleagues are going to take care of your luggage, please follow me," Stones said as she led them to a conference room and gave them copies of a file. Indicating the first photo in the file, she explained.

"Marine First Sergeant Franck Driscoll, 45 years old, head of Security at the U.S. Embassy in Paris since 2007; married to a French woman for 10 years, no children. He was found dead early this morning in the Bois de Boulogne, which you may know is …" Stones started before being interrupted by Ducky.

"One of Paris' red-light districts," he completed for her.

"Exactly. We have been watching Driscoll for a while because his wife's brother has ties to an organization we've been trying to infiltrate for years. Until about six months ago, we were unsuccessful. This man," she said, showing them another photo, "is a jeweler and incidentally the leader of a very prolific crime organization that deals with pretty much everything from weapons to drugs to kidnapping. We know him as John Smith; several times over the years, we send agents undercover but we never got anywhere. In May, this year, we got Intel he was spending some time in a spa town on the French Riviera. There he met this woman," she showed them another photo and elicited gasps from most of the team's members.

"Jennifer," Ducky whispered.

"Former Director Shepard and Smith got … close, during their stay," she hesitated slightly at that, and Gibbs' stomach twisted at the implication.

"I informed my Director of this unexpected development and, when Jenny returned in D.C, he offered her a deal that she couldn't refuse." Again, there was a slight hesitation and something that sounded like disapproval. "She was about to resign when she went to L.A…"

"We know what happened there," Tony interrupted her, not really wanting to relive that particular week.

"Apparently not. In L.A, she called us and told us someone was after her. It was the perfect occasion for us so we prepared what we had to, to stage the scene. It made us lose some time and we arrived almost too late. When we found her, she had a bullet in the arm, another in the shoulder - she had lost a lot of blood but she was still alive. At the hospital, the doctors informed us of her pregnancy, which was both perfect and problematic. We were making her take a huge risk but she accepted, wanting to continue. She found Smith in Paris, or rather he let her find him and since then she's in," Stones carried on.

"So, basically, you're telling us she is alive and pregnant?" Tony asked in disbelief.

"Yes, she is about to enter her eighth month," Stones answered and Gibbs paled slightly as he did the math.

"What's her cover?" Ziva asked, trying to get everyone back on track.

"Wait a minute," Abby said, turning towards Ziva. "Why aren't you surprised or shocked to hear about this? Did you know? Is that what Vance was talking about?"

Ziva sighed and nodded. "When Tony and I were in Paris earlier this week, I saw her and I asked a friend to tell me more about what was going on."

"You should be glad she did because that's the only reason we chose your team," Stones said before an argument erupted.

"You have to understand that this op is extremely risky for Jenny. She gave us a lot of information about Smith and his business and we hoped we would have enough to get her out of this before she gave birth. We were waiting for a gathering, to arrest as many as possible but it seems to be compromised. We need you to solve this murder. We have every reason to believe Smith killed Driscoll or ordered his murder. It seems they tried to recruit him and he refused; or maybe, it's about jealousy. Driscoll and Jenny became friends; Smith, being extremely possessive with her, may have felt threatened. Anyway, if you can prove Smith's involvement, then it's over and Jenny will be able to go home," Stones informed them and Gibbs' blood ran cold as a sudden thought struck him.

"What makes you think he won't kill her too if he suspects an affair?" he questioned.

"Smith has a very precise code of conduct about women. He idealizes them, he is never violent towards women in words or in action. We know that, when some members of his crew were accused of violence on women, he dealt with the guys and it wasn't pretty. No matter what, he won't do anything to Jenny. He won't kill the mother of his child, he cares too much about her," Stones was adamant. Gibbs should have been relieved but he wasn't.

"Does she know about Driscoll?" he asked.

"Not yet, I will inform her tomorrow. To answer your question," she said turning towards Ziva, "We kept the name she used at the spa town, Gwendolyn Stafford, Gwen. She works at the United States Embassy in Paris, American mother, her father was an English diplomat, both dead. She spent a lot of time traveling all around the world and asked recently for her transfer to Paris because of a painful divorce. That's how she justified the bullet wounds: attempted murder by her ex-husband. We had to be very specific; Smith is extremely wary and we know he ran a thorough background check on her," Stones explained.

"Rule number seven," Gibbs mumbled.

"Always be specific when you lie," the team replied immediately making Monica Stones raise her eyebrows.

"It should be interesting to work with you," she smirked. "One of my team is a liaison at the Brigade criminelle, who is in charge of the investigation until you take over. They're waiting for you tomorrow morning so I suggest you get some rest."

"Will we see her?" Abby asked and Monica bit her lip.

"I'm not sure it's a good idea…" she started.

"We're gonna have to interview Driscoll's coworkers. If we don't talk to her, it's gonna raise suspicions," Gibbs replied and the CIA agent studied him for a moment and nodded.

"Very well, I will see what I can do."

The team stood up and headed towards the door.

"Agent Gibbs!" Monica called after him and he stopped but without turning back to her. "I read Jenny's file. I know the two of you were partners, that you worked together here, in Paris. Don't screw this up. If Smith isn't the one who killed this Marine, we can't blow her cover."

Gibbs left the room without answering and without looking back.

He shared a room with Ducky; Abby and Ziva were staying together; Tony, McGee and Palmer were in a third room.

As they were getting ready for the night, Ducky asked Gibbs a question he had been dreading.

"Jethro, what exactly happened between you and Jennifer seven months ago?"

A/N: What did you think? Please review, I love to hear your thoughts.