Disclaimer in Chapter One.
Chapter Four:
They let Mrs. McKinley head back to her home, two NCIS agents were assigned to protect her. Once she was gone the others headed back to headquarters.
"Miss Williams, can I see you in my office please?" Hetty asked as the agents and Nate came back from the boat shed. Alex nodded and headed towards the smaller woman's office, the others and Nate exchanging looks.
"What can I do for you Hetty?" Alex asked sitting down.
Hetty pushed a file towards her. Alex looked down and realized that it was her incident report from what happened in Ireland.
"I don't understand Hetty" she said looking up at the woman confused.
"You haven't finished your report Miss Williams. Now, I understand that you were in the hospital after receiving shrapnel damage from when the door was blown off from the explosion in the warehouse, but Director Vance has been pressing the issue. He wants this report completed soon. If you don't, he will be taking you off of this case" Hetty said.
Alex's eyes widened in shock and anger. "H-He can't. I'm the only one left who can do this!" she said standing up.
"I understand this Miss Williams, but the orders the Director gave me are clear. If you don't finish this report then you will be pulled off this case and Mr. Callen and his team will be working it alone" Hetty said.
Alex sighed. She had put it off long enough. "I'll finish it tonight Hetty" she promised before grabbing the file and walking out the office.
Callen and his team watched her as she came out, a file in her hand. She threw the file down on the desk she was using, which happened to be on the other side of Callen's and then headed over to Kensi who had walked over to the coffee maker.
The two then began to talk quietly with one another.
"Navy Lieutenant Mark Hanson is still stationed out at Camp Pendleton, Alex. But, if you're going to talk to him you need to hurry. He's shipping out in two days" Kensi said.
"Thanks Kensi, do you know where he's headed?" Alex asked.
Kensi shook her head. "Sorry Alex, that's all my sources were able to tell me" she said before grabbing a cup of coffee and heading back over to the team which was currently in a deep discussion.
Alex watched them for a moment before quietly grabbing her jacket and slipping out the door. This was probably going to be the only time she would be able to do this. They wouldn't look for her; at least she didn't think they would. As she drove she turned off her phone so Eric wouldn't be able to trace it, not that they would go to that extent of looking for her.
Callen looked up from the discussion. "Where's Alex?" he asked looking around the building. She was nowhere to be found. The others looked around as well.
"I thought she was over by the coffee pot" Deeks said.
Hetty came out of her office and said "Miss Williams walked out the door while the four of you were all in your deep discussion".
. . .
Camp Pendleton:
Alex sat in her car looking at the house that she was parked in front of, trying to get the courage to get out and go inside. It had been a long time since she had last seen him, he had probably forgotten who she was. Maybe she didn't though, after all, she was responsible for his brother's murder.
Taking a breath she sighed and got out. If she didn't do this now, she never would, and in two days it would be too late. She grabbed the wooden box with intricate carvings on it off the passenger seat and headed up the drive.
Alex's hand froze in midair as she went to knock. Suddenly she became fearful. What if he didn't want to hear what she had to say? What if he hated her after she did everything in her power to protect his brother? Pushing the thoughts out of her head she knocked.
The door opened and a man with hazel eyes like his brothers opened the door. He stood proud, tall and straight, like any Marine would. His hair was cut in the usual military haircut.
A look of surprise came over his face. "Miss Williams? What are you doing here?" he asked surprised.
Alex couldn't help but smile, the man was a few years younger than her, but he still insisted on calling her Miss Williams.
"I thought you wouldn't remember me. Can I come in, I have something I think belongs to you" she said quietly.
"Of course" he said holding the door open and letting her in.
She stopped just inside the door and Lieutenant Mark Hanson motioned her to follow him into the living room. It was a comfortable one, but like most military homes. Everything was in it's right place, no mess could be seen.
She sat down on the edge of the couch and saw Mark sit down beside her. His eyes went to the wooden box that was sitting in her lap.
"This was your brothers. He left it with me…in case anything ever happened to him. I promised I would get this to you, but with me just getting released from the hospital, and this being my first trip back to Los Angeles since everything happened…I didn't have time until now" she explained running her hands over the carvings before handing it over.
Mark hesitantly took it, unsure of what his response should be. His brother, Thomas Hanson had been killed doing his job months ago. The service had been closed, and he didn't get much detail on what had happened or how his brother had died. All he was told was that his brother died a hero, along with almost all the rest of his team. The only one who had survived was their leader, Alex Williams, who he had met briefly when he went to go visit his brother a few years back.
He didn't know what to say to the young woman who was obviously still mourning the loss of her team, just as he was mourning for his brother.
"What's inside?" he finally asked.
"I don't know, he never told me. He just wanted me to give it to you" she said before standing up. He stood with her.
"I should be going" she said and Mark nodded walking her to the door. Alex stopped on the front steps and turned back to the Navy Lieutenant. "Your brother shouldn't have died, none of them should have died, but I promise, I will find the people who did this, and they will pay" she said before walking out into the night.
Alex headed back to the OSP headquarters and saw that almost everyone was gone, even Hetty had left for the night. She sighed and went over to the paperwork that was on her desk. She knew she would probably be pulling an all-nighter, especially when she had to relive those horrific few minutes it took for her team to be gone and her to by lying underneath a door blown off its hinges by a bomb.
She opened the file and began to write. There was only one reason she was doing this report in the first place, and that was so she could catch the people who were making her fill these papers out.
Okay so I am SO sorry for not being able to update anymore. I was slightly stuck for a while, that and I was doing schoolwork. I have exams coming up for my semester classes so I don't know when I'll get another chapter out, but here's the fourth. I hope this one lives up to your expectations. And I am currently racking my brain on trying to find something to write for Callen's Old Flame. It's just taking a little longer than usual so please bear with me. Thanks!
-Haleybug
