a/n sorry for the delay, I figure I'd let everyone enjoy the holidays. Thanks you for all the followers, reviews and everyone who is still with me. Also a special shout out to my beta cat4444, red marks and all.
Chapter 4
Three days had passed and they still had no leads in the Redington case. Kensi sat at her desk looking over the endless interview files from the Redington case, in hope that they missed something. Each of the files sitting in front of her seemed more pointless than the last. The longer she read, the more the words seemed to flow together. She could feel a headache beginning to build. Glancing up, she stared at the empty desk of her partner and scowled at the thought she would never hear his quips again, she soon began to tap her pencil against the pile of paper.
She knew Hetty was already in the process of finding her a new partner, not that she wanted one. The men that came into her life left just as quickly as they arrived. She caught the tears that were on the edge of bursting out as she continued to stare at the empty chair, thinking that it wasn't fair. She began to mindlessly chew on her bottom lip. She hadn't told Deeks how much he meant to her. She never told any of the men in her life how much they meant to her, not her father, not Dom, and they all left one at a time. She liked having Deeks as a partner; she had grown dependent on him, on seeing him, on hearing him. She was sure he would never know, and she could never tell him.
"Kensi!" Callen called, breaking through her thoughts. His hand rested on her wrist, and she blinked away the tears and morose thoughts, looking up into the green eyes of the senior agent. "Hey, you okay?"
"Fine." She quickly turned away from his gaze, grabbed another paper and began to scan the black writing, hoping he didn't notice she was losing her edge, although she knew it was pointless to pretend around him. His hand slipped off her wrist as he continued to stand at her desk, but he didn't move. She could feel his gaze on her and wanted to look up at him, but she couldn't.
"Hetty's looking for you." He sounded concerned, like he wanted to say more.
Kensi nodded and stood up. She didn't want him to see her like this. She was supposed to be strong. His hand caught her shoulder, and for a brief moment she shuddered. She wanted to hug him; she wanted to pretend everything she was feeling was going to stop, but most of all she wanted to forget about Martin Deeks. Instead, Callen turned her around, and the emotions that spilled from his features made her feel ten times worse. She had been so focussed on her own emotions, she forgot about everyone else. "It will get better, Kens, I promise." His voice was soft and weak. She smiled and clamped her hand over his. The awkward feeling was instant. Kensi tried to laugh it off as she stepped back from him.
Sam walked into the room at that precise moment and found himself staring at the two teammates. Looking between them, he could feel their nervous energy. "G, we're needed." He looked at Kensi, who looked relieved, and when she walked past him, she gave out a high-pitched laugh. He swore she gave him a 'Thank God, things were just getting weird' look. Callen stared like the air had been ripped from his lungs. "What the hell was that?" Sam asked as he stepped closer to his partner, studying him.
Callen stood for a moment trying to find the words, "Not a clue."
Sam stared at him, not believing his partner. "Please tell me that wasn't you hitting on Kensi."
"No! Oh, God, no! She's like my sister. I was just trying to be a good team leader." The words came out too quickly, and by the look his partner gave him, Callen knew it was too late to take anything back. Instead of fighting the inevitable, he straightened his shoulders. "What's going on?"
"Boat house, we're meeting Petty Officer Lance Dubnyk. Drinking buddy might give us an insight on his civilian life." Sam wanted to hang on to the awkwardness of the whole situation. Instead he gave up, back to work.
Kensi could hear Sam's laughter as she walked away and couldn't help but smile. She had no romantic feelings for Callen. She knew he was just trying to be a good friend, or at least she hoped that was the case. She waited to hear the laughter stop before she turned back to look for Hetty and walked straight into Eric, whose fall to the floor was less than graceful. The tablet he held protectively in his hands also fell to the floor, its screen cracking. Kensi tried to reach for the broken tablet, but Eric bounced to his knees and grabbed it from her hand.
"You okay?" Kensi asked, a little surprised by his actions.
Eric looked at the tablet then to her. "Christ, Kensi, watch where you're going," he barked.
"Eric!" She stared at him. This wasn't the tech she knew.
Frowning, he looked away from her. "Sorry, Kensi," he apologized. Looking around sheepishly before straightening his glasses, he said, "Hey, can we meet up for drinks after work?"
"Um, I was thinking ice cream with Gerald tonight."
He stared at her confused by her choice of words. "If you have plans then don't worry about it." He began to walk away.
She grabbed him, "Eric, I don't have plans. What up?"
He relaxed just a bit, staring at her. She could tell he was hiding something, and it was taking everything he had not to spill his guts right there in the hallway. "I don't want to talk about it right now. Wait for me after work." He paused when he saw Nell walking toward them. "Yeah, Kensi, I heard Hetty was looking for you."
Kensi stared dumbfounded as Eric spun on his heels and quickly walked away. Nell Stopped mid-step, her head cocked as she watched Eric walk away from her. "Let me guess," Kensi said as she moved toward Nell, "Hetty's looking for me?"
"Um, yeah." Nell looked past her in the direction Eric had gone. "What were you and Eric talking about, if you don't mind me asking? He's been avoiding me for the last two days and, well, he's acting really weird. Every time I ask, he deflects."
"You know, I really don't know either." Kensi tried not to smile; she began to wonder if Eric was finally going to ask Nell out. And just needed some womanly advice. "I'll find him and talk with him, but right now I should find Hetty."
Kensi left Nell standing in the hallway looking lost and hurried to Hetty's office, hoping the Operations Manager would be there. The office sat empty, a full cup of tea steaming next to a growing pile of paper. Stepping back, she looked up at Ops wondering if Hetty would be there. Walking toward the stairs, she jumped when Hetty spoke. "Miss Blye, I would like you to meet Agent Tori Shepherd."
Kensi turned around slowly, trying to hide her frustration. Hetty knew that Kensi didn't want another partner, and she purposely sprung this on her so she wouldn't make a scene. Tori, who was a few inches taller than Kensi, with fiery red, short-cropped hair and green eyes, stood next to the Operations Manager and stared back. She didn't look like she wanted to be there any more than Kensi wanted her to be.
"Kensi Blye," she said as she reached out to shake her new partner's hand, her voice cold and uninviting. "Pleased."
"Ma'am." Tori reached out, her hand squeezed tightly for a second before she let go. Stepping back, she looked around. "I was briefed on your mission on my flight. Just point me to my desk, and I'll help look over the files."
"Well, then, I'll let you two be." Hetty smiled and walked away, her hands cupped behind her back and a smug look pasted on her face.
Walking into the bullpen, Kensi picked up a stack of files and walked to the empty desk. "Here you go." The files made a loud thud as Kensi dropped them onto the wood desk.
"Listen, Miss Blye, I get it. You don't want me here." Tori stepped up placing her hand on the stack of files. "You lost your partner and that hurts, but I will be your partner and, right now, I need to know that you will have my back when I need it."
"Of course, why would you ask something like that?" Kensi was taken aback by the woman's forcefulness. She hated the idea of a new partner, but she would never purposely endanger her. Tori shook her head and walked around the desk. Sitting down in the chair, she pulled out a picture. Handing it to Kensi, she smiled.
"She turns two next month, and I don't want her to lose her mother or him to lose his wife." Tori opened a file as Kensi looked at the two smiling faces in the picture. The little girl had red hair like her mother. The man was dressed in a Marine service uniform, smiling broadly as he held the girl in his arms.
Feeling a little childish at her reaction to being assigned a new partner, Kensi cleared her throat and asked, "You're a mom?"
"Yes ma'am." Tori glanced up from her folders, "and a fellow Marine."
"My Dad was a Marine." Kensi looked up from the picture she still held, she couldn't help showing her admiration.
"I know, and I am sorry for your loss." She smiled, "When I got pregnant with Sarah, I asked for desk job. Tristan is waiting to be reassigned to Camp Pendleton so they can be closer to me."
"Oh." Kensi handed back the picture and took her seat. She looked up, watching Tori move through the files. She looked up, watching Tori make her way through the files, writing notes on a small pad as she went, and continuing until she had fully reviewed each file before moving on to the next.
The day slipped away from the junior agent, she didn't even notice when Sam and Callen returned. Tori looked up from her work when their playful banter stopped. Kensi yawned and glanced at her watch, it was nearly five. Her eyes burned from the reading. Sam stood in front of Tori giving her a cold stare, while Callen had wandered off, probably to find Hetty.
Knowing that the last time a new member joined the team, Sam wasn't the nicest person, Kensi quickly stood up and tried to get his attention by saying, "Sam, this is Tori Shepherd." Sam ignored her.
Tori stared back, unfazed by the man standing in front of her. She stood up and offered him her hand. "Agent Sam Hanna, it's an honor and a pleasure to meet you."
Sam shook her hand as a large boyish smile broke across his face. "New girl's got some sense."
"Don't go stroking his ego, Shepherd," Callen called from Hetty's office, "He's like a wounded puppy, now he'll never leave you alone. Did you guys find anything else out about Petty Officer Redington?"
"Nothing," Kensi grumbled, flicking the papers on her desk. "How about you, Shepherd?"
Tori picked up her pad, flipping through a few pages of notes. "The guy lived alone, no family, no pets, and no major money coming in or going out. I got to looking at his autopsy photos, and those bruises look a lot like he fought back too. I don't know about you, but during an interrogation, the victim doesn't usually fight back."
"And how do you figure that, Mrs. Shepherd?" Hetty questioned as she walked from her office, Callen following closely behind. Everyone took interest in what the new team member had to say.
Tori didn't miss a beat, "Look at his ankles and wrists. Nothing there. No rope burns or lacerations. Nothing. The only noticeable bruising was around his neck. And look at his knuckles. I have been in a few fist fights myself and, well, the bruises and cuts along them show he connected with something solid a few times." She held the picture and looked around. Hetty reached forward and took the picture, shaking her head. Callen peered over her shoulder and smiled at Tori. She had seen something even the Operations Manager had missed. Tori quickly continued, "I noticed in the ME's report, there were several small injection marks noted around his thighs and arms. The ME said the incisions were up to a month old, and suggested possible drug use, but in the entire time Redington was enlisted, he always had a clean record. His last blood tests came up negative for drug use. He was reported missing two weeks ago, so there is a pretty large hole in the ME's report, or Redington's commanding officer is hiding something."
Hetty looked at Callen, "Mr. Callen, I think Mrs. Shepherd has stumbled onto something."
"I think she has." Callen looked at Kensi, "Maybe it's time you two go back and visit Officer Verbeek and see if he forgot something. I'll check into the ME's report to see if anything else doesn't match up. Talk about a new set of eyes."
Kensi shook her head grabbing her jacket, "I'll drive."
TBC
a/n Please feel free to let me know what your thinking and feeling where I'm taking it. And I am sorry if I'm doing everyting wrong I'm still new at this and not sure on all the educate to all this yet. But still liking all you readers does a heart good.