Chapter 2
When first seeing Ziva's number registered on the caller ID the evening before, Tony was fast to assume she had experienced a change of mind about staying over. He therefore decided to let it ring a few times before answering, all to make his longed-for "I told you so" that much sweeter. When he finally picked up though, he wasn't met with the apologetic words of his partner he had hoped for but the rustling sound of fabric rubbing against her phone speaker. Annoyed that she seemed to have simply pocket-called him, Tony started shouting Ziva's name from his end of the non-conversation in an attempt to make her realize her mistake.
He had been on the brink of hanging up, having had no luck gaining her attention, when an odd noise sounding from his cell stopped him. After hearing it again Tony could positively conclude that it had been a scream that was the source of the sound. Suddenly on high alert he listened closely to try and comprehend what was going on, unconsciously making a move for the door.
Everything after that was all in a blur. He remembered hearing Ziva's voice echoing through his phone, screaming something about a girl, next thing he knew he had left the warmth of his home to pursue the impossible quest of guessing from where on the mile long radius between himself and Ziva's apartment she was calling.
Leave it to Ziva to have him run around like a maniac in the cold after dutifully playing hero the one night it was scheduled to rain that week. Well, pour actually, like someone had warned her about.
Tony also vaguely remembered making a desperate phone call to Gibbs that would leave his ego bruised for eternities to come. He had no idea his voice could reach that high a pitch.
"Yeah, I'll have the usual." Tony told the woman behind the counter at the coffee shop.
Having spent the whole night and most part of the morning examining the area from where Ziva's call had originated, Gibbs had ordered him to either take a nap or go get some caffeine in his system when arriving at the Navy Yard. Refusing sleep knowing that his partner was still missing, Tony had decided on the later, not finding it an entirely bad idea seeing how the urge to close his eyes was growing increasingly stronger by the minute.
Tony gave the barista a slight nod in gratitude as the smell steaming from the cup filled his nostrils, he could immediately feel his brain cells buzzing back to life as he took a mouthful of the hot liquid. After another two sips he turned to make an exit, returning to the main office feeling significantly more alert. He really did need that.
Now he just had to find Ziva, and until he had been successful in doing so rest wouldn't be an option. She was so going to owe him for his coffee.
Finally finding enough strength to push the darkness aside Ziva drowsily pried her eyes open. Trying her best to block away the persistent pounding in her head she forced herself into a sitting position and made a quick assessment of the current situation.
The poorly lit room she found herself in was in complete lack of windows, leaving her no chance trying to get any sense of time or space. All furniture had been removed save for two chairs leaned against the wall next to her accompanied by what looked like some sort of camera stand. The purpose behind the lonely props wasn't something Ziva would bother pondering right now though, she was positive there would be more than plenty of time for such things later. Besides, she already had a pretty good clue for what they were going to be used, and she was not a fan of the idea.
A jolt of pain hit her as she attempted to stand up – upper right side, at least two possibly cracked ribs. Putting of getting up for a moment Ziva allowed herself to lay back down and focused on taking small breaths, waiting out the lingering ache. Among the many things she hated about rib fractures the renal mobility was her least favourite one, the whole not-being-able-to-inhale-properly-without-it-hurting-like-hell thing posing as a close second.
Okay, correction; at least two definitely cracked ribs.
Annoyed with herself for allowing the men to catch her off guard in the woods, Ziva turned her head towards the other side of the room where she could hear someone whimpering.
As suspected the girl from earlier was lying on her back a few feet away from Ziva, arms crossed awkwardly over her chest. Her face looked pale in the faint light provided from a lone filament dangling from a cord above their heads, the only colours made out by her dark brows and various scratches covering her much too young skin.
Mindful of her injuries, Ziva slowly moved forward until she was crouched down next to the still form, pushing down a wave of nausea caused by the effort.
She gently cradled the girl's cheek in her hand and smoothed the hair away from her sweaty brow. The eyes hiding behind her tangled hair were racing wildly behind closed lids as a nightmare rocked the child, complete with random outbursts of incoherent words rolling from her lips in an agonizing mantra. When the girl started to visibly tremble and sob under her breath Ziva decided to wake her.
Since many years a victim of this sort of dreams herself, the agent placed two steady hands on each of the girl's shoulders and gave her a light shake.
"Easy now," She whispered softly, trying to avoid startling her. "Time to wake up."
Still a bit out of sorts, Ziva wasn't prepared for when the girl jerked herself upright fencing her arms in panic, her right elbow finding its target in the woman's already tender torso. The impact knocked the wind out of her and she had to recover for a few moments, cursing at the burning sensation jolting through her ribs as she once again tried to regain her breath, before returning her attention to its previous focus.
"Go away!" The girl cried, oblivious to her surroundings, voice heavy with tears. "Don't hurt me… please, just go away."
Whether it was her maternal instincts making a sudden appearance or own experiences that had her pleading so with the girl she didn't know, not that it really seemed important at the moment. Deciding that her protesting ribs would have to deal with it, Ziva cautiously reached her arms out and embraced the girl in a tight hug.
To Ziva's relief she didn't struggle against her touch. Instead she remained, both arms soon wrapped around the woman's waist, her hands desperately clutching the fabric of Ziva's jacket.
In the same fashion as her mother used to when she was younger, Ziva started to hum an old Hebrew lullaby stroking the back of the child's scalp gently. She could feel the small, tightly curled knuckles pressed to her back starting to relax little by little as she sang.
A good ten minutes later the sobbing finally subdued, a small voice taking its place. "You can let me go now."
Ziva obeyed, only to be rewarded with two dark blue eyes inspecting the blouse under her open jacket.
"Sorry for getting your shirt all wet."
Ziva smiled warmly as the girl settled on the floor in front of her. "Do not worry about it," She held out her hand, deciding that an introduction was in order. "My name is Ziva, and who might you be?"
The girl sniffled slightly before smiling back as she returned the gesture, folding her fingers around Ziva's palm, shaking it. "I'm Tanya, nice to meet you."
"Tanya, what a beautiful name!" Ziva gushed, trying to keep the conversation as casual as she could given the circumstances. "Russian, no?"
The girl lit up at the mention of her homeland. "Yes, how'd you know?"
"I can tell by your accent," Ziva kindly informed. "Your English is very good though."
"Papa says I already sound like an American, and we only moved here two years ago!" Tanya giggled, momentarily forgetting about where she was.
Ziva decided to take the opportunity to try and get some information out of the girl, maybe then she could bring some clarity to why Tanya had been targeted by the men in the first place. "That is very impressive Tanya. What does your father do for a living?"
"He owns an oil company back in Russia." Tanya answered dismissively. "Have you ever been there? It's reeeally cold in the winter."
"Yes I have actually," On an assassination mission to track down and terminate a Russian weapons dealer, Ziva finished in her mind. "On an, ah… on vacation."
"Cool! So, where you from Ziva?"
She had to laugh at the girl's forward nature. "I was born in Israel."
"How old were you when you got here?" Tanya went on, curious.
"I was just about to turn twenty-one," Ziva said, remembering when she first was attached to NCIS as a liaison officer. "And that was almost eight years ago now." She added as an afterthought, amazed by the number herself. Had it really been that long?
"I'm turning thirteen soon." The twelve-year-old bragged, a conceited grin spreading on her lips.
"Oh, a big girl then," The agent played along. "I bet your father is really proud."
"He is," Tanya's face saddened a fraction at the statement. "He says I'm almost old enough to start training for taking over the company."
Sensing she was about to enter sensitive territory Ziva carefully pressed the girl for details, staying to what was necessary for her to figure out the reason behind Tanya's kidnapping. "What is your father's company called?"
"IvanOIL. It's named after papa, Aleksandr Ivanov."
"Can you remember if your father has been acting different lately, or has been in contact with any strange people?"
The girl pouted. "Can't we talk about something else?"
"It is very important that you tell me, Tanya." Ziva insisted.
"Why?"
She hated further confusing the already scared girl but she had to know. "I will explain everything later but right now I need you to trust me, do you think you can you do that?"
Before Tanya had a chance to answer the sound of footsteps outside the room caused Ziva to shush her. "Someone is coming."
TBC
That's it for the second chapter. What're your thoughts on the story so far? Constructive criticism is very much welcome! :)
