First of all, I'm really really sorry for the long wait on chapters! ^^ I know I said I'd post in less than a week, and it's been like, 3 months but school was tough 'til the end, and now I've got a long summer ahead of me, but lets hope I have some time to write! (But maybe I have a better plot line, now that I've taken some time to think!)
Jamie twisted and turned under the heavy blankets. After returning to the safe house at 2:30, she had insisted on taking the couch while Josh got the bedroom to himself. The wool blanket on top of her was heavy and thick. She rolled over to her side, and settled. She was staring down the long hallway. For almost the first time, it hit her. Her parents were gone. She would never see them again. They wouldn't be here to comfort her or the make it all better. She sniffled a little. It hurt. She wished she hadn't looked at it like that.
A noise woke Tony. He wasn't quite sure why. It was very quiet and muffled. He pulled himself from the bed, pulling on his jeans and grabbing his gun. Slowly he made his way down the hallway. He glanced in all the rooms. Kenny and Peter were sprawled out on the bed they shared, just as little boys usually were. Josh was cradling his injured arm. Ziva, in their own room, was curled in a tight ball on a recliner. She had refused to share the bed with Tony, especially with the kids around. Finally he made his way to the den. Jamie was asleep on the couch. No…not asleep. She was awake and…sobbing? Yes…she was trembling as each sob racked her body. He let his gun fall by his side. He watched silently as this continued for several minutes. Finally she stopped and lay still. After several more minutes, he walked quietly into the den. Obviously he hadn't guessed right, and she wasn't asleep. She sat bolt right up in bed. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying.
"What?" she snapped. She saw the gun in his hand, and silently, got up. "What's wrong? Is someone here?" she asked in a whisper, though her voice hadn't lost hostile tone. Tony shook his head.
"I heard…something but it was nothing." He assured. Ziva came out of the hallway, her gun drawn. Jamie and Tony both looked at her. Tony shook his head. She nodded, and put the gun away. Then Ziva seemed to take in Jamie's puffy eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, thought about it for a moment, then closed her mouth with a shake of her head.
"I am going back to bed. I will see you in the morning." She turned briskly and left the room. Jamie watched her go then stared at Tony. He shrugged. Jamie turned around to see the clock. It read 4:30 AM. She sighed, and glanced at Tony again. He watched her climb back under the covers, and turn away from him. After that he turned on his heal and headed back to the bed room. When he opened the door, Ziva's eyes were locked on him. That scared him a bit.
"What?" he asked. She narrowed her eyes.
"She was crying? Why? Was she hurt?" Ziva asked. Tony shook his head and sighed.
"They're called emotions, Ziva. It means to feel sad or angry." He said slowly. She hissed.
"I know what emotions are! Just because she misses her parents? I don't miss my father one bit." She spat out the last part like a bitter taste in her mouth. Tony rolled his eyes.
"Well, this is a fourteen year old, Ziva. She wasn't trained to show no emotions, and her parents didn't betray her. I think the situations are a bit different." He said, and lay back down in bed. Ziva shook her head, and curled up in the chair again.
The next morning, there was more trouble.
"No, you have to stay here! There's a reason it's called a 'safe house'." Tony insisted.
"Yeah, since we were so safe on the way here! I mean, you know, before my brother was shot. We want to come with you." Jamie snapped. Ziva had been hearing the argument all morning. Jamie insisted on coming into the office with them, but Tony had a point. This was their safe house, and they need to stay here. Then again, Jamie also had a point.
"But I'm telling you, Josh can rest here, and relax while we work!" Tony almost screamed.
"And I'm telling you that we'll be safer at NCIS, and I can make sure you're doing it right." Jamie shot back.
"How would you know how to do it right? How many murder investigations have you worked? Oh yeah, zero!" Tony did scream this time. Jamie wore a stubborn look that said that even if Tony got his way, this would be a disaster.
"Fine, let's call Gibbs and see what he thinks." She smirked. Tony sighed, exasperated.
"Fine, you can come! But if Gibbs gets pissed, it's your fault." Jamie paused, and then shrugged.
"I can live with that." She said. Peter jumped up.
"We get to go back? Yay!" His cries or joy were echoed by Kenny. Josh stood up.
"Well then I'm coming too. I guess I'm responsible for you guys now." He said, though he flinched when he did. Tony felt sorry for him. He couldn't imagine being responsible for three kids, two of them five, at that age.
So, in less than an hour, all six people were piled into the small car and racing toward NCIS. Tony knew Gibbs would be mad at them. Mostly him and Ziva. Why couldn't he stand up to a fourteen year old? Because he felt sympathy? No. Maybe he felt bad for her, but she wasn't exactly the kind of girl you say "Awww how cute" to. She was more of a "Wow…don't want to cross her path if I can help it" kind of girl. Soon they arrived at NCIS. As they waited for their floor in the elevator, Tony couldn't help but notice that every other floor Jamie would glance at Josh. Again, Tony noticed Jamie had a back pack with her. He shrugged. Oh well. When they entered the bullpen, Tony took Gibbs' look of surprise as a bad thing. He crooked a finger at the two of them. They walked over to his desk.
"Was I not clear in the emergency room when I said they were to stay at the safe house?" he demanded, his icy blue eyes burning. Tony pointed to Jamie.
"She made me do it, boss!" he defended.
"He's right. I did." Jamie said. Gibbs glared at her.
"I thought you were going to cooperate." He said. Jamie rolled her eyes.
"That doesn't mean I going to let you guys treat us like two year olds!" she said. Gibbs sighed.
"Fine. Just stay out of the way." He said. Just then, his phone rang. It was Abby.
"Hola Gibbs." She said.
"What is it Abs?" he asked.
"Got those background checks you asked for." She said.
"On my way." He said. Tony followed him as he walked briskly to the elevator.
When they arrived in Abby's lab, as always, music was blasting. Music that Gibbs called noise and Abby called the classics. She smiled.
"Hello Gibbs. Ooh, Tony! Bad night?" she asked. Tony nodded.
"Yeah, kinda." He muttered.
"Abs, today please." He said.
"Right, so Petty Officers Daniel and Charlotte Emery. Pretty normal people. They were marries for twenty seven years, both in the Marine Corps, the girl served two terms in Iraq, and one in Afghanistan, the guy one in each…pretty normal. They lived in Centerville, but have a house in Ohio near Wright Patterson Air Force Base. They have five kids-"
"Five? You mean four." Tony interrupted. Abby shook her head.
"No. Five." She clicked something on her computer, and five birth certificates popped up. There were the four kids up stairs, but there was also another one. A girl. She was the oldest, four years older than Josh. She was also a marine.
"MIA? They have a missing sister? Where did she go missing?" Tony asked. Abby typed a few things in a search.
"Iraq. She went missing in combat." She said. Even Gibbs was surprised. Jamie, Josh, Peter and Kenny had an older sister.