Chapter 7

"Ziva?"

Jenny's voice was barely more than a raspy whisper, and she sounded very weak, but Ziva was so glad to hear her say anything at all that she decided to abandon her post for a few minutes and entered the director's room. The red-haired woman seemed relieved to see a familiar face, but not as relieved as Ziva felt.

"It is good to hear your voice again," she told her.

Jenny frowned. "Why does that sound as if you thought you might never talk to me again?"

"There was a code red or blue or whatever the doctors called it," Ziva said, shaking her head. "In any case, your heart gave out for a few seconds."

"Wow, sounds like I owe someone in this hospital a debt of gratitude."

"They were pretty efficient," Ziva nodded, remembering the bunch of nurses and doctors that had been in this room the second the monitors had started beeping and flashing red. It hadn't actually taken them very long to resuscitate the director, but it had sure felt like an eternity to Ziva.

She had felt so useless, just standing there, unable to do anything besides try to not get in the way and stop herself from yelling at the nurses who had kept yelling at her to get the hell out. No, it had not been a pleasant experience and certainly not one she cared to relive. But there was nothing Ziva could do about that. It really began to… what was the word… beetle… no, bug her.

But at least the director was now conscious once again, so Ziva could stop thinking about how to tell Gibbs that her condition had worsened.

As if Jenny had read her mind, she asked, "Did you… happen to tell Agent Gibbs about that little incident?"

"No, I kept putting it off, hoping that there would be better news soon," Ziva admitted. "Which means that now is the time to tell him, I guess."

She reached for her cell phone, but Jenny made a move as if to stop her, at least until she realized that rapid movements were not a good idea in her current condition. "No, don't… ah, shit…"

Ziva took a quick step closer to the bed. "Director, are you alright?"

"No, I feel like crap," Jenny hissed through her clenched teeth.

"Shall I alert the nurse?" Ziva asked upon seeing the pained expression on the elder woman's face.

But Jenny shook her head and took a couple of deep breaths. "No, no doctors, no Gibbs. He's already upset enough. No need for him to rush back to the hospital because he'll sure as hell stop listening to you as soon as you say the words 'heart' and 'failure'."

Ziva smiled and put her cell phone away. "He cares about you. We all do." She glanced at the black roses, and Jenny followed her gaze.

The first genuine smile appeared on her lips when she saw them. "Abby, I presume?"

"Yes, she is very worried about you, too," Ziva nodded.

"Wow, nothing like getting gunned down to make you feel special," Jenny muttered.

"Perhaps that is because you are special."

Jenny focused back on her now. "Have you been standing guard out there ever since I came out of surgery?" she asked.

"Yes, I have," Ziva confirmed, although something in the director's eyes told her that this was not the answer she had wanted to hear.

"That must have been hours!" she indeed protested. "Go get some rest."

"Oh no, I will not leave you alone," Ziva said grimly, shaking her head.

Jenny's eyes narrowed. "I could make that an order, Officer David."

"You could," Ziva conceded. "But Gibbs' unspoken threat to kill me if I were to leave my post overrules that order, I think."

Jenny sighed and closed her eyes for a second. "He really thinks that guy will come back to finish the job?"

"It is possible… I certainly hope he will try."

"What?" Jenny frowned. "Why? What did Gibbs tell you to do with him if he comes back?"

"Stop him from hurting you again – ever," Ziva phrased it carefully.

Jenny shook her head. "Okay, I appreciate your concern for me and how personally you all seem to take this, even though I am the only one who's got a hole in her chest. But I do not want you to do anything stupid. No matter what Gibbs said, the goal is still to get that guy alive."

"Is that also a no on castration then?"

"It most definitely is. And no other mutilations or forms of torture either. Did I make myself clear, Officer David?" Even lying in a hospital bed, hooked up to dozens of monitors and other machinery, Jenny managed to radiate authority.

Ziva suppressed a sigh. "Yes, Director."

"Good, so how are the odds that you could smuggle some coffee in here?"

Ziva smiled at this request that was so like Gibbs. "I am sorry, Director. I don't think your heart is up to that, yet."

Jenny just opened her mouth, probably to protest, when her doctor entered the room. "Good, you're awake. How are you feeling, Director Shepard?"

"Oh, just peachy," she replied sarcastically.

"We can give you more painkillers. But don't worry. It's a very good sign that you've regained consciousness so quickly. However, I think it is best if you rest now." He gave Ziva a pointed look.

She acknowledged it with a nod. "I will go back outside now."

"No, wait," Jenny protested. "Doctor, I really don't think I will overstrain myself while talking to one of my agents."

While she said this, though, the ECG announced that her heart rate was already accelerating. Before the doctor could say 'I told you so', Ziva headed for the door. "It's alright," she said. "I should be outside anyway."

"Ziva!" Jenny called before she could actually leave. "Thank you."

Ziva smiled. "No need to thank me just yet, Director," she said and then left the room, hearing Jenny mutter something about why there was no rule against involving damn annoying doctors.

Back outside on the ICU floor, Ziva took one of the coffee cups from Abby's care basket and hesitated for a few seconds. But then the director's doctor left her room, too, and when he saw her standing there with the coffee, a dozen alarm bells seemed to go off in his head, so Ziva quickly started drinking the coffee herself.

After the doctor had left, Ziva was just about to get rid of the coffee cup and focus on her guard duty again when she saw someone opening the door onto the ICU floor from the stairwell. A man's head appeared there for a few seconds, but as soon as his eyes fell on Ziva, he vanished again. The only thing she could make out before he was already gone was that he was all dressed in black.

Now it was her turn for the alarm bells to go off in her head. She wasn't Gibbs, but still Ziva knew in her gut that this was the shooter they had been waiting for. Apparently, he was too much of a coward to even try to get past her. Ziva knew that Gibbs had ordered her not to leave her post and that she herself had just assured the director that she wouldn't, but this could very well be their best chance of catching that guy.

In a split-second, Ziva made her decision. She grabbed a male nurse and positioned him in front of the door to the director's room. "If you let anyone through that door who cannot prove to you that he is from NCIS, I will kill you!" she told the confused looking man and then sped away towards the stairs.

She could hear the hastily descending footsteps of the shooter and followed him all the way down into the parking garage. Ziva stopped shortly to take a look around. She heard his footsteps echo through the huge garage and spotted a car that wasn't parked in one of the numerous parking spaces but rather in the perfect position for a hasty exit.

The second Ziva realized that, the guy came into view again, heading right for the blue sedan.

Ziva drew her weapon. "Federal agent. Freeze!" she called, remembering the director's order to stick strictly to protocol, even though she would have preferred to simply blast the guy's head off. But he didn't heed her order anyway and jumped into his car to immediately start the engine.

Ziva broke into a run to get closer and raised her gun to send several rounds after the fleeing car. Her bullets shattered the driver's window and the tires started screeching when the car swerved and then hit the brakes. And Ziva noticed too late that the car wasn't speeding for the exit anymore. Instead, it started reversing with such speed that it was impossible for Ziva to jump out of the way in time. The trunk of the car slammed into her and flung her first against the rear window and then back onto the concrete floor.

Her head felt as if someone had split it open. Ziva heard the car come to a screeching hold before the driver jumped out of the car again. She didn't need to see him to know that he was aiming his own weapon at her. If she did not move right now, she was as good as dead. Fortunately, her Mossad training made sure that she had some extra strength left for situations like these. With her entire body screaming and aching in protest, Ziva rolled aside.

The deafening shot of the gun echoed through the garage and Ziva clenched her teeth when the bullet grazed her side. But she had to ignore the pain if she wanted to live. She rolled back onto her stomach and started firing her weapon before her attacker had even fully come into view again.

She heard him mutter a curse under his breath and then hurry back towards his car. Realizing that her bruised and bleeding body would not be fast enough if she tried to jump to her feet and follow him now, Ziva remained on the ground and sent several more rounds after him from down there. Even though her angle was bad, at least one of her bullets went right through the already shattered driver's window and must have hit whoever occupied the driver's seat. Still, the car sped away with screeching tires.

Ziva dropped her SIG and rolled onto her back, trying to control her ragged breathing. Then she pressed a hand to her bleeding side and suppressed a moan when a piercing pain shot through her body.


A/N: Action sequences are not my strong suit. Hope it was ok, though. The next chapter is almost done, so it will be up soon. Thanks a lot to those of you who reviewed and enjoyed the last two chapters so much!