Chapter 7

A/N: So I'm thinking the epilogue is gonna be next, just don't know when I'm going to get it done. Enjoy the chapter!

Igor hadn't given them anything, and admittedly, there was a part of her that knew he wouldn't. Whatever hold Svetlana had on him was too deep; the only thing she could hope for was McGee and Ziva getting somewhere with Rafik. While Kate was escorting Igor downstairs to be picked up by Metro, she sent DiNozzo back to the squad room. Either Pride or Hetty had to have some kind of information on their end. And if not, they had to get Rafik to crack; otherwise, they had nothing.

She entered the observation room expecting to see Jethro standing at the window, but instead McGee had some sort of program pulled up on the lone computer; he had his back turned, focused on the screen, but registered the door opening; he must have assumed it was either Kate or Tony because he didn't turn, concentrating on whatever task he had.

So, where was Jethro? She cursed under her breath, glancing into the interrogation room, already knowing she wouldn't like what she would see. Jethro and Ziva sat on one side of the table, Rafik on the other. Damn it, she gave him instructions to not interrogate him. If Rafik said something incriminating, it would get thrown out.

"She said to kidnap the girl, that it would hurt you and another woman," Rafik was saying, "Knew a lot about the three of you. We went to the club where she was."

"And then you left the note." Jethro stated.

"Makar was driving. Igor helped me get the girl in the car, noticed Viggo texting. They fought. Igor killed him. And then I heard him fire his gun. We drove for a while, a few hours. Makar's her bodyguard, knew where to go."

"Svetlana's?"

"Yeah. Doesn't leave her side except for then."

"Can you call him? Abby needs help, Rafik. She doesn't deserve this." God, no, no she didn't. She was innocent in all of this.

"I…"

"Please." She could hear the weariness in his voice, but it was masked by the order, his voice gentler than any order he normally gave, awareness of the situation bleeding into his voice. God, this would kill him if they didn't make it in time.

Rafik nodded; Ziva handed over her phone, and Rafik began to dial; McGee began to type. It clicked then. They'd get a location. She walked closer to the computer screen. But then Svetlana would know they'd be on to her. She barely paid attention to the conversation, watching the screen for a location to pop up, observing McGee text Jethro with updates.

Come on, come on.

"No, nothing's wrong." Rafik was saying.

McGee sent out a quick text again as the location pinged.

Good work, McGee. The address memorized, she headed out the door. She started this mess. She had to be the one to finish it.


He had two agents escort Rafik to Metro station, before heading into the squad room, Ziva and McGee hot on his trail. He found Tony on the phone, Kate heading down from the catwalk.

"DiNozzo, Kate, gear up, we have a lead. Where's the Director?"

"Not in her office," Kate answered, heading down the stairs, "Cynthia said she had an errand to run."

Jenny running an errand at a time like this? Didn't make sense.

Tony hung up the phone, "Decker's gone too. Pride said he was in MTAC with him and he disconnected, said he had to go."

Dread settled in his gut. Damn it.

He grabbed his gun and badge from his desk, heading to the stairs, "Let's go. McGee get me the location on the GPS thing."

They were following him immediately, and he pulled out his phone as he fast-walked down the stairs, dialing Jen. It rang a few times before going to voicemail. He was going to hang up, but the message was different.

I didn't mean for any of this to happen, Jethro. I started this, and I'm going to fix it. I have Decker as backup. I'll get Abby back even if it kills me. I love –

It cut off before she finished, the monotone voice telling him she was not available and to leave a message. Damn it. Ziva, Kate and Tony got in the back, while McGee got in the passenger's seat, programing the GPS. He started the engine, looking at the new device. Approximate time was an hour and a half. Jen had at least a 10-minute head-start, longer based on how she would be driving. In the hour in a half it would take to get to Svetlana's hideout, she would be gone. He shot out of the parking garage, a dangerous glint in his eyes. They didn't have time for speed limits today, this blizzard outside be damned. Not when Jen was on a suicide mission and Abby was still in danger. By the time he was out of D.C. corporation limits, the car was pushing 100.


She'd never seen a dead body up-close like this before. Sure, at work she'd been down in Autopsy after Ducky had finished his examination, and she'd seen crime scene photos, but this was on an entirely different scale. She stared at Makar's lifeless body, numb, tears slipping from her eyes. How could Svetlana do that? He was just talking on the phone, and now he was gone.

"Get up, Doctor." Svetlana ordered, and if she thought the blonde had sounded unhinged before, that was nothing compared to now. Had she been able to use her legs, she would've stood. As it was, she was rooted to the spot. She recognized the signs of being in shock, but she couldn't pull herself from the spell. Svetlana cursed under her breath and then she was being yanked up by her shirt, standing on shaky legs. "I said get up." Why did she need to get up? She wasn't expecting the slap across the face, sending her stumbling backwards into the dining chairs, crashing back down. She blinked up at her numbly, clutching her cheek. Why was it stinging? "It's time to go now, Doctor."

Go? No, she didn't want to leave. She couldn't leave Makar out here alone. He had a family, she was sure of it. He deserved a proper burial, not to be rotting in a place like this.

Svetlana walked up to her then, brandishing the gun in her face, "Are you paying attention? Are you listening to me at all?" She recognized the weapon, blinking as she slowly started to focus on the situation at hand. Svetlana had shot Makar for no reason. What would she do to her if she didn't listen? She nodded, eyes focused on the weapon. Svetlana smiled cruelly, "Good. Now it's time to go."

"I won't go with you," She sounded a lot braver than she felt.

Svetlana's smile dropped, and she pushed the gun closer, the cool metal pressing against her head, "I would re-think that statement if I were you. I would hate to have that brilliant mind splattered all over the floor."

"If you wanted to kill me, you would've already done it," Oh, God, shut up, Abby, she silently scolded herself. But there was a part of her that wasn't afraid. Even with a gun to her head, she knew she just had to stall. She could feel it. "It's not safe to drive. You want to risk your life making some get away, go ahead. But I won't leave. Not with you."

"You'd like to stay here? Is that what you're saying?" She didn't like the way Svetlana was speaking, the way she was waving the gun around.

"It's not safe to drive in this," she backtracked.

"Damn it, Anatoly, I know what I'm doing!" Svetlana yelled, turning to her right where she must have been hallucinating her dead-fiancé, pulling the gun back.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement. A tall man was lurking around outside. She froze. Svetlana she could handle. One of the goons being back, she couldn't. What do I do?


Too many thoughts were racing through his head as he drove, thoughts of Abby and Jenny, of the incident in Paris 9 years ago. Was it a stroke of luck that Svetlana had chosen to stay in Virginia? It was possible, but he suspected that she was wanting to leave soon. She already had Makar's death under her belt, he doubted she wanted another. She would want to move quickly, probably had wanted to wait until Rafik and Igor returned before heading out. Igor's car was in the evidence garage, but that didn't mean one of the men's other cars weren't at the hideout. He was sure if they weren't, Svetlana had her own car under her alias.

The blizzard had finally let up, much to the relief of his team, but he was still at least 10 minutes out from Shenandoah Park. He couldn't risk going any faster on these back roads. He just prayed either he or Jen got there in time. If they were too late…

His hands tightened on the steering wheel, staring at the road ahead. No, they wouldn't be.


Jen sent Decker around the back, while she secured the front; one of the perks of being Director was being able to give Decker a temporary reinstatement. The lone car beside the cabin was covered in snow, but she was sure it would run. Briefly she debated on slashing the tires but decided against it. Svetlana wasn't going to escape this time. She could see inside the cabin through one of the windows but barely. She could make out a body on the floor and for a moment, her heart seized with fear, before she caught sight of Abby, back to her, wearily watching Svetlana, who appeared to be yelling at no one. Great, she turned into a psychopath. But then that meant the fourth kidnapper was dead. Dread settled in her stomach when she realized that Abby could have possibly witnessed it.

Her phone chimed from a message from Decker, confirming her suspicions, One dead, suspect hallucinating, hostage in line of fire. She cursed silently. Svetlana seemed distracted so if both she and Decker came in through the front, they might have an advantage. For the briefest of seconds, she almost regretted leaving Jethro in the dark, with nothing but a voicemail recording. But then she thought of Rule 45, and she knew that it was the right decision. She took a breath, hoping the chilly air would help, but it only made her nervousness worse. She didn't like the way the deck was stacked.

She texted back, Come around front. She took another breath, feeling the weight of the gun in her hand for the first time since pulling it out. Decker joined her, his own weapon pointed at the ground.

"Now what, Director?" he asked with a cheeky grin.

She nearly rolled her eyes, her voice hushed, "She's still distracted. Need to move. Surprise her. Have to take her out before she hurts Abby." She glanced through the window again to find Svetlana still raving. "Go now."

Decker kicked the door open, and she immediately followed him, "Federal agents!"


God, Anatoly was being unreasonable. First, he wanted Dr. Sciuto alive and then he wanted her dead, switching back and forth over and over. She wanted him to shut up, so she could concentrate. Makar was dead, Viggo was dead, Rafik and Igor had betrayed her. It was only a matter of time until she was caught. She needed to leave while she could.

Kill her. She's useless now.

"I need her alive, Anatoly."

If she closed her eyes, she could feel the way he touched her cheek, stroking softly.

It would hurt them more if she was dead.

"But then my bargaining chip goes out the window."

Look at her. She glanced over at bright-green eyes, still so full of hope despite the situation. She'd look so much prettier with a bullet in her head.

She started to raise the gun and then lowered it, indecisive.

"I need her alive," she repeated.

Kill her, Svetlana. Just do it.

"Damn it, Anatoly! I can't!" she shouted back, lowering the weapon again.

And then the front door burst open.

"Federal agents!"

She swiveled to the door, gun raised. Special Agent Decker entered first, his gun trained on her, Jennifer entering behind him, her gun on her as well. It felt like time was slowed as she met the redhead's eyes. Now this, this was what she was waiting for.


Svetlana was getting more and more erratic as the minutes went by. She wanted to escape, to get as far away from her as possible because she was de-escalating fast. As she talked to herself, debating whether or not to kill her, she saw the gun shift in her hand a few times. This wasn't good.

"Damn it, Anatoly, I can't!"

In the eerie silence that followed, she was sure she heard footsteps but dismissed the notion. She was just hearing things. Until the door flew open and she heard a male voice call out the words she'd been longing to hear.

"Federal agents!"

Instinctively, she backed further away from her captor, but also further into the interior of the cabin, not recognizing the man. For all the she knew, this could be a ruse by Svetlana. But she found herself relaxing instantly as Jen was quick to follow the man through the door.

"Well, isn't this a nice surprise." Svetlana said with a smirk.

"It's over, Svetlana." The man retorted, his gun trained on her.

"Is it now?" her captor questioned, raising her gun, pointing it back towards the man, "Let's see who's a faster shot, shall we?"

"I'll be me," the man answered, and she noticed that Jen was slowly inching her way closer to her, gun pointed slightly at the ground, prepared to point it up at a moment's notice.

"What do you think, Jennifer?" The cold, blue eyes switched between her and Jen, ignoring the man now, "Don't you think I would be a faster shot with the way you hesitated last time?"

"That won't happen this time." Jen answered, raising her gun.

The blonde had a death wish, she was sure of it. Maybe she'd finally cracked because she turned the gun on her again. In the blink of an eye, she'd fired off two shots.

Jen had to have anticipated the gunfire because she shoved her out of the way, landing awkwardly on her side in front of her; more gunfire met her ears as the man fired off two shots back at her captor. She heard Svetlana's gasp as the man's bullets hit, one biting into her shoulder, making her drop the gun, and then other piercing her leg, dropping her to the floor.

The man made his way over to her, kicking her gun away and handcuffing her, dragging her to her feet, "I'll call Gibbs."

As he escorted her outside, she turned to Jen, smiling softly. And then she immediately frowned, noticing blood dripping down Jen's arm.

"Jenny?"

"It's a graze." She replied with a pained smile. "I'm okay, Abbs. Are you alright?"

"It's not just a graze," she answered her, ignoring her question as she reached out, gingerly touching the wound; Jen winced despite herself, "See? You're hurt."

"I'm fine," Jen insisted.

"Let me see."

"Abby."

"No – "

"Abby," Jen interrupted again, but she ignored her.

" – you took a bullet – "

"Abby."

" – that was so stupid. She could've been a better shot! You could've – "

Jen cut her off with a kiss, pulling her closer with her free arm, and she immediately melted into her, losing her train of thought. When Jen pulled back, she smirked, her dark eyes glinting, "I told you I would do anything for you, Abby. Even take a bullet."


He pulled up just as Decker was leading Svetlana to the other car. She was handcuffed, an angry look coming over her features as she gazed at him. He left Tony and the others as he made his way into the cabin, unsure of what he'd find.

He saw the dead body first, over by the window; and then he saw Jenny on the floor, and it looked like she was bleeding, but he couldn't be too sure. Abby was fawning over her, her eyes lit with worry. And that was just like Abby, worrying about others before herself. Jen noticed him first, and then Abby followed her gaze, her eyes lighting up when she saw him.

"Hi, Gibbs."

Relief washed through him as he made his way over to them. She was okay. Maybe hungry and a bit dirty but she was okay.

"That's all I get?" he questioned with a teasing note.

"Well, Jen did do the daring rescue," she answered, standing up to meet him.

"And left me back at HQ," he replied, but didn't saying else. That was an issue to discuss later. For now, he was content to pull her closer, and she melted into his arms, resting her head on her chest, "You okay, Abbs?"

"Mhmm," she nodded into him and he hugged her tighter, feeling her shake as tears sprung to her eyes, her voice cracking as she continued, "Knew you'd find me."

"Mhmm," he echoed, and when he pulled back to kiss her, he wiped away the few tears that fell. "You're safe now."

"I take it Ducky and Metro are on the way?"

"Before we left. Had Kate and Ziva call them with the coordinates. They'll be here soon."

Abby looked over at Makar's dead body, and as she stepped away from them, she wobbled on her feet. They reached out their hands to steady her.

"Woah there," he muttered.

"Careful," Jen added.

She opened her mouth to protest, but then Ducky's voice could be heard coming from outside, accompanied by Detective Garrison from Metro. He headed outside to greet them, feeling more relaxed than he did since this whole ordeal started.


Ducky entered the cabin with Jimmy, and she smiled when she saw them.

"Abigail," he said, making his way over to them. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Ducky," And that was a lie, she was exhausted, but she would worry about herself after, "Ducky, Jenny got shot."

Jenny rolled her eyes, holding out her injured arm when prompted, "It's just a scratch."

"Mr. Palmer, please take Mr. Lavrentiev to the truck." She watched as Jimmy loaded Makar's body on the gurney, relieved. When she got home, she could help him get back to his family.

Jenny's hissing pulled her from her thoughts, and she turned to find Ducky wiping antiseptic on her wound. It was a small bullet wound, a through-and-through, but still…

She didn't realize she was squeezing Jen's hand until Jen squeezed back, drawing her attention.

"Anything," Jen said, repeating her statement from earlier.

"I'll have to check the gauze tonight to see how it's healing, but you should be good to go." Ducky said as he began to put his medical equipment away.

As Gibbs re-entered the room with a detective, Jenny started leading her out the door, placing her jacket around her shoulders to brave the cold weather before helping her walk.

"How far away from DC are we?" she questioned as they stepped outside on the porch; she took in the chilly air hitting her face, having not had fresh air in nearly three days. "And where are –"

She was cut off again, this time by Tony pulling her into a fierce hug, as he and the rest of the team met them on the porch. But this hug from Tony was different than normal, and it made her smile brighter. It wasn't just that Tony was relieved; she suspected he was also feeling guilty for letting her go alone, even if she was meeting up with friends at the club. When he finally pulled away, she was hugged by Kate, Ziva and then Timmy.

"No more disappearance acts, okay, Abbs?" Tony said, "I've never wanted to be headslapped so much."

As if summoned, Gibbs came through the door, landing a head slap to Tony's head, making him wince, "Better?"

"Thank you, Boss."

"Metro is taking over the scene," he said as he took off his jacket, placing it around Jen with an eye-roll, "Decker is escorting Svetlana to Metro."

"I will go with him." Ziva volunteered.

"I can stay with Ducky and Jimmy," Kate said.

"There's probably a lot of evidence to process, I can help them bag and tag." McGee added.

"And I'm sure they need pictures taken too." Tony said.

"Wait, guys, you don't have to –" she started.

"Abbs, you just went through two and a half days of hell," Tony started, "You deserve to have some alone time with your partners."

A/N: Don't forget to review!