Random on Purpose

A/N: Abby's POV. NCIS: LA. Part 7. I changed the timeline on this to make it a little closer to Judgment Day.

The alcohol was still buzzing in her body as she exited Steampunk; the hot rods were beyond wicked. And then she was being grabbed, a hand over mouth and something being injected into her. And then she was falling…

When she came too, everything was foggy and her hearing was distorted. And she knew he had found her: the Phantom.


"What's the bed for?"

He held up the wine glass as a toast, "To you, who empower me."

She tried to make the dizziness in her head go away. She could hear Gibbs' voice in her mind, telling her to keep him talking. Stall him. He drank the wine slowly; as he talked about the four killings before the suit and the countless animals before that, she tried to remain calm. The man was a psychopath. Finally, she couldn't take it.

"It's not fun. It's awful. And you are awful. Every person and animal you killed had a life and people that loved them and deserved them alive. I'm not on your side. I was never on your side, and I will never be on your side."

"I know. But it was fun to pretend. Do you want to pretend, buy yourself another night at life?" The Phantom patted the bed invitingly, "After all, you'll be able to move soon."

Had she been able to, she would've shuddered; she settled for spitting at him, "Look at that."

He nodded thoughtfully, "Yeah. And look at this." Her eyes widened as he pulled an axe from underneath the pillow. "The truth is you're just not smart enough for me, Abby. Because you're there, and I'm here. And now the great Forensic Specialist dies without any evidence of her killer. And it will be fun for me, Abby." She was going to die. She'd accepted that. Even if Sam and Callen got to her in time, it was too late. He stood from the bed, "I'll leave, trip the door fuse remotely, the place will go kaboom and The Phantom remains traceless."

"You're not traceless," she replied with a smug smirk.

"Oh come on Abby. You know butane burns hot enough to destroy evidence."

"You have my teeth marks in your finger." He glanced down at the axe thoughtfully. "Creep."

"I saved the white woman in her late 20s spot for you. You should be honored." She closed her eyes as the Phantom prepared to swing. Her mind moved rapidly from her parents and Luca to Stan; Tony and Kate popped up, followed by McGee and Ziva. Next, it went to Director Morrow and Acting-Director Vance and then Ducky, Gerald and Jimmy. The NCIS LA team found a spot too. Finally, she conjured an image of Gibbs and Jenny in her mind; if this was it, then she was going to focus on two of the most important people in her life. I'm sorry I didn't come home.

The sound of glass breaking from above and gunfire startled her; she opened her eyes to see her captor's lifeless body sprawled out on the ground. Callen came into her vision, bending down to look her over, "You ok?"

"Yeah," she replied. "Thank you, G Callen."

"You're welcome, Abby Sciuto."


It felt amazing to finally be able to move.

"How does it feel to solve fifteen murders in as many hours?" Callen asked with a smile, pulling her into a one-armed hug.

"Almost as good as being alive."

"Hey, I lowered him down," Sam said, and she smirked, hugging him too.

"Thank you."

"Abby," Hetty said, coming up to them, "The post-incident medical evaluation isn't optional."

"I know, but if Gibbs and the team are going to be here, I figured I could just wait a few minutes?"

Hetty opened her mouth to answer when the doors to the squad room opened.

She was vaguely aware of Tony, Ziva, Kate and McGee following him, her entire focus on the man leading them, his blue eyes shining with purpose.

"Abby," Her name was barely out of his mouth before she had launched herself into his arms. The moment he had his arms around her she sighed, relaxing completely for the first time since she'd gotten out of the Phantom's grasp. She felt him release his breath, tightening his hold for a moment before finally letting go, "You ok?"

"Yeah. Thanks to Callen and his team." She smiled at him, "We got him. We got The Phantom."

He sighed again in relief, and she allowed herself another hug.


She'd only been back in DC for a few hours before Acting-Director Vance had called her into his office. He'd been the one to approve her going to LA, and she was sure he was going to apologize. Gibbs had been ready to give him a piece of his mind. Jen was still out resting and hadn't really been in the office. She and Gibbs knew she was wanting to step down as Director and it was clear to them that Vance would take over.

"Miss Sciuto," Vance said when she walked into the office, smiling softly.

"Leon," she nodded in reply, "you wanted to see me?"

"Just wanted to make sure you were alright. You people make DC look like a safe-haven compared to LA." It was meant to be a joke but she couldn't find it in her to laugh.

"I'm fine," she subconsciously rubbed her neck, "Was that all? Because I would've rather had a visit in my lab. No offense."

"None taken. And all from me, yes." She cocked her head to the side, confused, "I'll just step out and leave you two alone."

She frowned, watching as the man exited the office. From the corner of her eye, she caught movement.

"I think we should just stop going to LA."

She turned to find Jenny reclining on the couch; she was dressed in a pair of yoga pants and an NCIS shirt, a far cry from the pantsuits she normally wore, "You're supposed to be at home resting."

"I'm resting here, Abbs," the redhead patted the seat beside her, "I haven't seen you since you left."

That was true. Jen had been sleeping when Gibbs drove her to the airport and saw her off. She did a lot of sleeping recently; her body's way of healing.

"No, you haven't," she said softly, sitting beside her. Jen opened her arms, and they both sighed as she fell into them. "I," she took a breath, "I really thought that it was the end. I thought I'd never see you or Gibbs or anyone else again."

"Everything worked out in the end," Jen soothed her, pressing a kiss to her head, "And you were so brave, baby."

"Gibbs is angry," she muttered, "I've never seen him so mad. He lashed out at Eric before we left LA." That hadn't been a pretty sight…

"He wasn't happy that you'd gotten kidnapped," Jen said, interrupting her thoughts. "Eric should've been with you the entire time."

"And then he could've been hurt or-or killed."

Jen smiled softly, pressing a kiss to her forehead, "Always worrying about others."

She snuggled into the redhead's side, "Yeah. Always." She looked up into the emerald eyes, "You're still in a lot of pain, aren't you?"

"Just a little," Jen confessed with a shrug, "Had to see you. Why you insisted on coming back in even though you were cleared to go home is beyond me."

"NCIS is home," she replied, glancing around the office. "It's where everyone I love is." She pauses, thinking of the minimal sleep she'd had back to DC, waking up from night terrors, "And I figured you'd need your rest and didn't want to disturb you."

She can see it in Jen's eyes that she wants to ask, but she merely smiles softly and says, "Back to work then, Abby."

She presses a quick kiss to her lips as she stands, "Right away, Madame Director."