"The question we should be asking is, where's Liat right now?"
"I don't know," Ellie admitted. They had moved to the back room of Abby's lab, where she kept pillows and blankets. Ellie was sitting with her back against the wall, a blanket over her legs, while Tim was spinning absently in Abby's chair, staring up at the ceiling.
"You don't know because..."
"She's off the radar, supposedly on a classified assignment. Like I said, I'm not as talented as you. I couldn't crack the Mossad database."
Before she'd even finished speaking, Tim had planted his feet on the floor to stop the chair and starting typing on his laptop. "Good thing I'm talented," he told her with a grin. "Keep talking."
"If you figure out where Liat is, that's probably where Ziva is. She was able to get information on when the strike would happen, so she's probably got someone giving her information. Kind of like a mole who only reports to Ziva."
Tim's fingers stilled on his laptop before he said, "Malachi, probably," and continued to type.
"Okay. So Malachi tells Ziva the intel and she's able to get Tali to safety before going after Liat. Does Orli know any of this?"
"No," Tim replied without pausing. "She doesn't trust Orli, so if she doesn't want Orli to know, then she doesn't know."
"Okay. So wherever Liat is, Ziva is, and Orli's none the wiser. What about Malachi? Who would he side with if it came down to it?"
"If he knows that Liat is dirty, he'll be working with Ziva to take her down."
That was an idea that Ellie hadn't considered. "So Malachi not only gets the intel to Ziva – he's helping her too?"
"I think so." Tim shrugged. "He's loyal to country before all else. If he thinks Liat is a threat, and he doesn't think Orli will help him take her down, then he's working with Ziva."
"That's a lot of 'ifs,'" Ellie pointed out.
"A lot of 'ifs' that make sense, given that Ziva didn't die in the strike," Tim replied. "Aha!" He turned his laptop around so she could see the screen. "Liat is in Madrid."
"Then so is Ziva. But what's her plan? She's not a ruthless killer anymore."
"But Liat almost killed her daughter," Tim reminded her. "If Liat had just threatened Ziva, she would be angry, definitely – but she threatened Tali. That's a completely different ball game to a mother."
"We have to tell Gibbs and Tony." Ellie levered herself to her feet. "Come on."
Chapter 3 is up! Let me know if all of this is making sense, because I'm not entirely sure. :P Thanks to everyone who has read, followed, favorited, and reviewed! I'm glad you're all enjoying the story!