Author's Notes: Wow, thanks for the reviews everyone! Made me very happy and even though I told myself i would not make daily updates, turns out I just couldn't resist due to the responses I got, thanks! Those great people are, M E wofford, shopgirl13, agent1332, losingmymind2 and immirose! The most popular comments I got that made me happy was how Nathan is how you would expect Ziva's child to be; headstrong, brave, smart and stubborn. Which yes, he is each of those :). I'm so relieved that Ziva is very in character, she is my favourite character on the show and it's nice to finally get her right. Ziva is certainly alone in this, mostly, and will not accept help as it's not something she would do but if it gets desperate enough she might have to. And Tony will find out what is going on soon enough, hang in there! :) Also thank you to those that looked at my banner and let me know that you loved it, that it matched the story well, made my proud. I will put the next banner up once the story reaches that point (So far the story as four phrases, we're on the first one. The second is not too long after Ziva and Nathan are reunited, but the other two will take longer to reach).

Contains some swearing. Underlined text is in Hebrew.

I do not know how long this story will go for, but I have it planned almost up to chapter 20 and am writing chapter 9 right now. Also, I am not going to drag out Ziva's search for her son too long, for those of you that are hanging out for the reunion...only a few chapters to go!

Ziva's meeting with Jed had proven useful, as it provided an insight to additional details regarding the kidnappers who had taken her boy from her, and yet it had not been as productive overall as she'd hoped for. After she and Jed had met with his contact, Ziva had little else to do other than to return to work.

Once she arrived at NCIS, Ziva acted as though nothing had happened.

Arriving at the bullpen, she tried to force the memories from her mind and focus on their case. She gave McGee the background checks he needed, and arranged the interrogation Tony previously requested. Otherwise, she avoided looking at anyone in the eye and talking more than necessary.

It took a while for her to feel guilty about the way she had reacted towards them, especially considering the parting words she'd said to Gibbs. They were her friends and did not understand why she was going through emotional turmoil, or why. They did not deserve the way she lashed out at them.

'Ziva, are you okay?' Tony's voice cut through her thoughts, which made her visibly started at the sound.

Gibbs had been watching from the balcony overhead and decided it had gone on too long, and too far. Ziva's jumping was a clear sign of her being out of focus, scared, and possibly obsessive to the core with something painful and personal. He knew from experience, and could spot the signs a mile away.

When Ziva shrugged at Tony, and gave him a false answer to his concerned question, Gibbs strode down the stairs and directed Ziva to the elevator. Ziva, unsurprised by his order, did as she was told. The doors shut softly and the second the elevator started to move, Gibbs hit the emergency switch. Ziva hardly blinked as the confined space went dark and the air conditioning shut off, her gaze only observing the glare he aimed at her.

'What the hell is going on, Ziva?' Gibbs asked in a low tone, which wasn't exactly soft or calm, but gave the impression of such.

Ziva glanced sideways at him, but looked away. She chose not to say anything and simply refused to involve him in her mess.

'Tell me!' Gibbs snapped.

Ziva almost jumped again, but had regained her focus in time. She attempted to remain unreadable and unrevealing, triggering her Mossad instincts of preserving herself and the truth.

'We're your friends, Ziva.' Gibbs tried another tactic.

His previous one clearly wasn't going to work on her, and he had to get answers. Ziva was almost more complex. Abby would have told him in a heartbeat, McGee soon after, and Tony followed a slap to the head. Ziva, however, was harder to reach out to. But he would never stop trying, because she was a part of their NCIS family now.

'We're your team!'

'It is nothing for you to worry about.' Ziva insisted. She quickly glanced at him again, and for that split second of exposing her expression, Gibbs caught the emotion ridden in her eyes.

Guilt.

Her brown gaze was filled with guilt, and sadness.

'Your actions prove otherwise.' Gibbs stated. 'Since when does DiNozzo make you jump?' He stood right beside her, knowing he couldn't intimidate her, and instead cleverly put pressure on her conscious.

'Where did you go?' Gibbs asked. 'Is this about Ari?'

Ziva was surprised by his question and looked at him, her gaze lingering this time. She didn't answer immediately, as her mind thought over how he could have reached the guess he had involving her brother.

'What made you think of Ari?'

'Is it?' Gibbs continued.

He still wasn't getting a straight answer from her, but had no intention of backing down until he had something to go by, something to lead him in the right direction to help her or at least understand what was going on.

'No.' Ziva's reply wasn't entirely truthful, but she was confident it also wasn't a complete lie.

'Where were you?'

'Meeting with a friend.' Ziva said as she reached forward and switched the emergency button back. 'I am a big girl, Agent Gibbs. Everything is fine.' Ziva stood firm until the doors opened a second later.

She walked out of the elevator and returned to her desk in the bullpen.

Gibbs let her leave. He stood nearby, watching her carefully, and was determined to get to the bottom of this. But if she didn't trust him, or the others, than he knew it was a lost cause. He could never force anything from a Mossad Officer like Ziva. She had been at NCIS for years now, and yet, after all this time, why didn't she trust them to help her?

What had they missed?

'No!' Nathan screamed as loud as he could. He punched and kicked anything in his reach, and even if he couldn't make contact, he tried anyway. 'Let me go!' He yelled angrily, fighting every attempt they made to shove him into the back of their black van.

'I hate this job.' One man grunted, after copping a fist to the jaw from the resisting child he tried to keep his grip on 'Get in!'

'No! No!' Nathan's voice raised in volume.

He aimed a hard kick at the other man, getting him square in the groin. The man went down fast. Seizing the the opportunity from the slackened hold, Nathan used the side of the van to propel himself from their grasp with his feet, and took off running.

The seven-year-old ran as fast as his legs could carry him, tearing down the road and onto gravel ground. He heard footsteps behind him, and voices that cursed or yelled, but he blocked them out and kept going.

He didn't get too far, as he tripped on some rocks and fell to the ground hard.

The fall tore the material of his pants over his knee, which made him sniffle when he felt the stinging pain, and saw blood drip onto the dirt. His mind jerked back into survival mode, remembering he was being chased. Nathan jumped onto his feet and ran again, but two strong arms scooped him from under his armpits and lifted him away from his momentary freedom. They forcibly shoved him inside the van, which had been driven down the road while he had made his attempted escape.

Even with his kicking and screaming, Nathan was no match for his kidnappers. He was worn out and his knee was hurting, plus there were three muscular men to overpower him. Nathan was a child who only had diminishing hope to guide or assist him, whereas they had every other advantage over him.

Nathan wondered if he would ever know freedom again.

Since talking to Gibbs, rather avoiding answering his questions the best she could, Ziva had remained at her desk and typed away at her computer. She barely halted, until suddenly she paused and a frown creased her concentrated expression. Her instincts were telling her something as wrong, but it passed and left her feeling confused.

Ziva returned to what she was doing, when her screen went black as a cause of a power outage. The approaching storm was to blame, and it had killed her computer as everything went dark.

'NO!' Ziva exploded with anger, hitting the side of the screen with her hand. She had been so close to locating one of the men, and now the information was probably lost. 'Shit machine.' Ziva cursed at it.

The backup power kicked in a second later, and her screen flashed back on.

Her computer was re-starting, and it calmed her only slightly, until she searched desperately for the info. It was gone. Her anger, unable to be contained, burst once again. Her fury was only hindered by the sense of despised helplessness she felt. Tears prickled at the corners of her eyes, as she'd had the location right at her grasp, only to have it snatched away.

Why was everything against her having her son in her arms where he belonged?

During the moment, Tony had been watching Ziva the entire time. When the light reflected the tears she carelessly brushed away, he decided he could not take it any longer. He got up from his chair and cautiously approached her desk to sit on the edge of it. He silently watched her until she noticed his presence and looked at him. Her tired and saddened eyes pierced his own.

'Talk to me, Ziva.' He pleaded. He was shut down again, as she abruptly turned and headed to the nearest bathroom.

Tony waited exactly five seconds, before he followed after her. However, on the way through the hallway nearby the destination, Ziva stopped and turned to glare at him angrily. She proceeded to threaten him in the same harsh and cold way she had to Gibbs the previous day. Tony didn't budge. He stared at her and braved speaking, taking a chance when she didn't move away.

'Then you're going to have to kill me, Ziva.' He told her. 'I'm not going anywhere.'

Ziva could see the seriousness in his gaze, and actually pondered on telling him the truth for a moment. She wondered if he could really understand, or if he'd simply tell her to let it go, just as her own father had. Tony was not like her father, she knew that, and still it made her hesitant to trust him. Her phone interrupted her thoughts, and she hastily answered it in thirst of information or something to bring her closer to her goal.

'I know where they're keeping your son!' Jed told her, and revealed the address to her.

'Wait for me!' Ziva hung up and spun around to leave, but once again she was followed by Tony.

'I'm coming with you.' Tony insisted. He dared to stand across her path on the way to the elevator.

'No. Move.' Ziva shoved him, but with little success.

She fought against him, until she decided to try another route. She turned and bumped straight into Gibbs. It became quite clear that both men were not about to let her leave. Ziva's fear of losing her son flooded her mind and overwhelmed her senses. She stopped struggling against them, and fought to remain as strong as she could. Ziva could not lose Nathan again, and her terror of a repeated loss unsteadied her for a moment. Even with her Mossad training and her weapons, she knew there was no way to fight off both Gibbs and Tony without killing them.

Ziva could not do that.

'Move!' She snapped, regardless. 'Or I will be forced to kill you.' She growled.

And still they did not move, which pushed her fear completely to the surface. Tears escaped her and her voice crumbled under the pressure of her panic and emotions.

'Please!' Ziva begged. 'Please, just let me go.'

'Tony goes with you.' Gibbs gave him her only open for escape, because Ziva could reach her breaking point. Never had anyone seen so much emotion elevating from her in a mere two days. In fact, neither Gibbs nor Tony had ever seen this much emotion from her in the entire four years they'd known her.

'Fine.' Ziva breathed and ran for the elevator, hitting the button harder than necessary. She was afraid of wasting any more time, and Tony hardly had a chance to catch up with her.

Tony said nothing about Ziva's driving, though he hung on for dear life the entire way. He still hadn't said a word as they arrived at a rather run-down, isolated house in Norfolk. He got out of the car alongside Ziva, watching as another pulled up beside them and Jed joined them. There were no introductions or explanations exchanged.

Tony grabbed his weapon, when the other two did the same, and followed them closely. He didn't know what was going on, and they acted as though he wasn't even there. Tony stayed close to Ziva, in hope she might confide in him and shed some light onto what was going on with her.

She didn't.

Ziva and Jed searched the house and yard, but each were empty. She growled and angrily kicked the bedside table within the smallest room. In her rage, she yanked the bed and overturned it, beyond frustration that once again her son had been taken from her reach.

'Ziva-' Tony went to say something to her, as he stood by the doorway and watched what she was doing.

Her rage vanished as something caught her eye, freezing her motions for a few seconds. She crouched down to feel something on a wall, a small smile gracing her lips as she stared at it. Softly touching the tiny Hebrew words, she read them aloud to Jed and, by extension, Tony. She left out the first three words, however, as she felt Tony did not need to hear them.

'At DC on Monday.' Ziva sniffled. 'Save me.' She read and stood up.

She ducked her head and headed out of the room. It was too dark in her eyes, and she could still recognise his scent. The first three words of Hebrew from the wall echoed in her mind: Message for Mama.

Ziva and Jed spread out to search the surrounding area for any other clues. Tony stood near the cars, having been left without any details of the situation and what they were looking for. Except now he was sure it was more of a "who" than a "what", after what he had witnessed and heard so far.

Ziva looked downwards at the gravel road and bent towards it. There was a small strip of green material lying in the sun. She touched it gently, as she had with the wall, and picked it up. As she stood, her skin boiled with rage upon seeing the sight of the tiny blood marks on the object, which had likely come from her precious boy. They had hurt her baby, and not they were going to die. Ziva was going to slaughter them for what they had done to her son, no matter that it too.

She was going to make them pay!

'Ziva.' Tony approached her again. 'Whoever you're looking for, NCIS can help.' He tried to convince her to let them in.

'No one can help.' Ziva replied, her gaze still fixated on the material in her hands.

Tony reached towards her and lifted her chin to raise her eyes to meet his. He wasn't going to accept her answer, and tried to make her realise she wasn't alone.

'Then at least let me help.' He said. 'No one should be alone in whatever it is that's making you so...' Tony exhaled. 'You're hurting, Ziva.'

'The pain will not stop until I find him.' She pulled away and got into his car, giving him no chance to do the same. She stole his vehicle, which Tony could only stand and watch as it took off down the road and out of sight.

Jed had kept his distance until then. He walked up to Tony as they watched the cloud of dust Ziva had left behind.

'I will drive you back to NCIS.' Jed told him. 'I fear Ziva is getting too dangerous in her search, and you need to know what is going on.' He said. 'Before it is too late.'

Nathan hadn't been in his new room for more than an hour. He still had enough anger and energy to kick and fight his new surroundings, hitting his palms against the walls and growling to himself.

It was small, like the previous room, and the bed wasn't much different. The only significant change was the absence of a bedside table, which was replaced by a wooden chair instead. He glared at the chair, which acted as a table for the plate containing a few slices of bread and an apple, accompanied by a glass of water. He crinkled his nose in disgust and kicked the chair hard, sending it and the contents flying across the floor. It made a loud clattering sound, which didn't do much to satisfy his irritation.

His captors weren't outside the room, he noticed, otherwise they'd have come inside and given him a painful slap or an earful for his destructive actions. Nathan would have gone hungry the next day as a punishment as well, he knew, though the mess he had made now was likely still going to get him into trouble when they saw it.

Nathan kicked a wall and everything else, until he hit his hand against the windowsill at the end of the room, where a chip of dull white paint fell off. Pausing, he observed that the window was old, just like the house, and the wood framed appeared to be rotting. Nathan, flushed with renewed hope, grabbed the fallen chair and stood on it to reach the windowsill properly.

He attacked the frame as hard as he could, even using the back of his pencil to dig deeper until the wood finally gave away and broke free. Smiling, Nathan yanked the latch free. He looked behind him towards the door, and cautiously through the window, as he had to make sure the coat was clear first. He climbed up and jumped out the window, which was only just big enough for him to squeeze through. Nathan landed on his feed and remain still, listening for a few seconds to test he had evaded being noticed.

He then took off, running for his freedom as fast as he could with more determination than he'd ever shown in the five years since he had been taken from his mother.

Ziva swore in Hebrew when a car zoomed passed her. She concentrated hard on the road, and no flashbacks tried to invade her mind. And yet, there was something about Tony's car that annoyed her. It wasn't until she'd stolen it that she realised it was a substitute to him.

She did not want to tell him about Nathan, but in a way she also did.

Small shreds of hope within her said he could help her, that he would comfort her and convince her she would see Nathan again. All Ziva had now was his car, which smelt like him in an odd way and oddly of fast food.

She listened to his radio, which was barely audible, and wished Tony was there with her. She forced her mind from her feelings towards her co-worker, because Nathan was still missing and he was hurt. Somehow, after five years, she still knew they would never kill him. No, she would be the one to kill them. Ziva hummed along to the radio to calm her nerves, while her mind fixated on promising herself she would find Nathan.

No matter what she had to do, Ziva going to get her son back.

Author's Notes: And that is chapter 3! Whatcha think?

-Mel