A/N: Two chapters in one day. Happy Wednesday! I'm almost finished with chapter 10 and I've edited this chapter about 5 times, so I feel comfortable putting it up. Enjoy! And, of course, review.

A big thank you to those who are following the story. While not new to fanfic and NCIS, I am new to NCIS fanfic. It's weird to be posting fics for characters who aren't even on the show, but I also haven't really watched since Ziva left, so I guess that just goes to show how captivating Ziva and Tony are.


Seven.

Her contact ends up being Tony's favorite Shin Bet officer, Adam Eschel. He had hoped that Adam had dropped out of Ziva's life after she left the badge behind. He knows that he is being unreasonable, considering Ziva had told him that their dalliance had been a one-time thing that meant nothing to her, but he narrows his eyes a little when Adam approaches and greets Ziva with a "shalom" and a hug.

"It has been a long time, Ziva. How is university?" Adam says, holding her at arm's length and checking her out. "You look well."

"University is going well. I graduate soon," she replies, then nods her head towards Tony. "You remember Tony DiNozzo?"

Adam nods in greeting toward Tony. "Still with NCIS?" he asks.

"Yep," he replies, channeling his inner Gibbs and keeping the chit-chat to a minimum.

"How can I help?" Adam gets right to the point.

"You know about the rogue MI6 agent, Jacob Scott?" Tony asks.

Adam sighs and nods. "Yes, we have been trying to track him as well. We have no indication he has been in Israel, however. The rumor is that he shot an FBI director in DC and we believe he is still in the area."

Tony nods in confirmation. "But he's looking for Ziva and we think he sent someone to track her down here."

"Someone went through my house while we were out. We need to get out of Israel undetected," Ziva explains.

"Give me two hours. I will meet you back in this spot with the things you need," Adam says, then quickly strides back in the direction of his office.

Ziva turns to Tony and gives him a half smile. "How would you like to spend those two hours?" she asks.

He shrugs. "Coffee?"

She nods and leads the way to a cafe a few blocks away. After they order, they sit inside, near the back where they can keep an eye on anyone who enters. "So," he says. "Are you excited to be on the run?"

"No. I would rather take my exams," she replies, taking a sip of black coffee and scanning the few patrons.

He gives her a mock wounded look. "But come on. You're on the run with me. Can't be that bad."

She glances at him with a smile before resuming her scan of the cafe. "Maybe," she allows.

They are silent for a few minutes. He watches her watch the other patrons They have been getting along very well - almost too well - but he knows that they have been skirting around some unresolved issues. Such as whether he has a place in her new, normal life. He hopes he does, because he knows that he doesn't want to live without her. He told her that, years ago, under the influence of truth serum, and it still applies. He tried and it sucked and he doesn't want to go back to that. But they're about to go on the run and he's not sure she will be able to handle getting pulled back into her old life and having a conversation about her feelings at the same time.

He knows he should be worried for their safety. But he has an unreasonable urge to just touch her, make sure she is real. He has been refraining all day but his resolve is slipping. He drums his fingers on the table to keep them from inching towards her.

She ticks her eyes back toward him. "What?" she asks.

"What what?" he counters, putting on his most innocent facial expression.

She gives him a pointed look and puts her hand over his dancing fingers. "I threatened to stab a classmate with a pencil during a test for shaking his leg."

He chuckles. "I bet that isn't even a joke." He pauses, considering. Maybe it would be better if he cleared the air now and left no doubt in her mind about how he feels for her. She might kill him, but maybe it would make him less jittery. He looks her straight in the eye and says seriously, "Listen, I have something to tell you."

"This is all an elaborate prank, there is no rogue agent after me, and you made me contact Adam for the first time in months for no reason?" she replies, raising an eyebrow. She squeezes his hand, which she is still holding.

He is sidetracked for a minute. "Wait, you haven't seen your trusted buddy Adam for months, even though you've lived in the same city?" Not that he cares. He is over her dalliance with Adam.

Or so he tells himself. It was much easier to be over it when she was half a world away.

She shrugs. "He wanted a romantic relationship. I told him in no uncertain terms that would never happen. After, I figured it was better if I did not rub it in his face by hanging around."

He raises an eyebrow, not displeased by this news. In Berlin, he got a definite vibe from Adam that he felt differently for Ziva than she felt for him, but after learning about what had happened between them after Eli David's funeral, he thought he had read that wrong. And had a tortured couple of white nights over it.

She relates this news matter-of-factly, but he knows the old Ziva would not have given up this information readily. He debates with himself whether to dig further or not, and the more inquisitive part of him wins out. "Why don't you want a relationship with him?" As if he has a right to ask her that.

"I have known him since we were children. I have never felt that way toward him," she replies, granting him that right. "Plus, I am... otherwise occupied."

She could just be referencing her busy class schedule, but the way she is looking at him makes him think otherwise and his heart skips a beat. He swallows and picks up his previous line of thought. "Ziva..."

Before he can get any further, one of the baristas gasps loudly and announces to the cafe, "There was a terrorist attack."

Someone else asks, "Where?"

"Outside the city. Mortar fire hit a farmhouse." She flips on the cafe's small tv screen that is mounted to a wall. The image that flickers to life is that of a farmhouse surrounded by an olive grove. Or, what used to be a farmhouse - there are flames and smoke. The olive trees closest to the house are also on fire.

Ziva and Tony look at each other, their eyes reflecting the other's panic now. The farmhouse is very familiar - Eli David's farm. Ziva's early childhood home. Where she had first stayed when she moved back to Israel. And, although he tries to push it to the back of his mind because it isn't important right now, a more intimate memory of that house bubbles to the surface. Of finally seeing what she looks like when she falls to pieces above him, the taste of her bare skin.

"Well," she says after a long beat, looking more composed. "Now I know this is not one of your pranks."

She does not comment on the fact that her childhood home has been incinerated. She releases her hold on Tony's hand so she can twist in her seat to get a better view of the tv. It is in Hebrew, but she translates information she finds interesting. The property once belonged to the former head of Mossad and is still owned by his family. It does not appear anyone was inside at the time. It is unusual for a house in the countryside to be the target of a terrorist attack, but considering the former owner, it is unsurprising. No mention of Jacob Scott or Ziva herself.

Tony's phone vibrates in his back pocket. He digs it out. A text from McGee, asking for confirmation that they were not just blown up. Tony confirms that they are not laying in tiny pieces, then turns off his phone and puts it in his duffel bag. "Just in case someone wants to track my signal. Should have done it hours ago," Tony mutters, mostly to himself.

Ziva turns back to face him. "I do not think anyone is tracking your signal, or we would be toast, not my childhood home."

"Fair point."

She looks at her watch and stands up. "We should go meet Adam."

They make their way back to their original meeting spot near the Shin Bet headquarters and wait for Adam, facing in opposite directions to look for any signs of a tail or anyone coming at them with, say, an uzi.

Adam arrives shortly. He hands a manila envelope to Ziva. "IDs and money. You will take a freight train to Haifa, then catch a military flight to Italy. They will be waiting for you," he says by way of greeting.

Ziva gives a brief nod. "Thank you, Adam."

He hesitates, then asks, "You heard about your father's farmhouse?"

"Yes," she responds briefly, her voice finally sounding a bit shaken. "Any casualties?"

"No, not that we have been able to find" Adam replies, confirming what they heard on the news. "I must get back. Be safe, and contact me when you can."

Ziva nods again. Adam pauses for another minute like he wants to say more, but his eyes flick toward Tony. He walks off briskly without another word. They watch him leave for a moment, then Ziva turns to Tony. Her face looks somewhat melancholy and Tony doesn't know if it is because of the house or the loss of a childhood friend. "We should go catch our train."