The next day, the black Chevy Suburban had been found. Zach had been able to remember some of the license plate. While the team went to investigate the vehicle, Ducky and Abby kept Zach occupied. Ducky entertain the boy with magic tricks, but the boy had the tricks figured out which reminded Ducky of someone other than Jethro. The man wounded by Gibbs the previous day had been fatally shot and was found by the team. Gibbs and Ziva walked into autopsy to learn Ducky's findings.

"Ah Ziva, what a pleasure!" The medical examiner greeted her. He was used to Jethro being the only one to come into autopsy, but he always welcomed more guests.

"Doctor Mallard," Ziva greeted him.

"Oh Ducky, please."

"Ducky," she said with a smile.

"Are you two done with the name game?" Gibbs asked, impatient.

"Our guest departed this world only a few hours ago, but he was in a great deal of pain before he died…seems he was wounded…single round. The bullet lodged under his scapula…the shoulder blade," he reported to Jethro and Ziva.

"Duck, I'm going to guess that slug's from my safe."

"As to the fatal injury, this circular burn around the entry wound suggests…"

Ziva took over. "A silencer was used. It was done in haste by someone with little…if any experience. If a professional did this, he would have not left his weapon. It's untidy…marks of an amateur. If it were me, I would not have been so obvious. There are literally dozens of effective ways to eliminate a target without raising suspicions. Heroin overdose is popular, but it requires a history of prior use. Of course something like insulin or potassium can be used to suggest death by natural causes."

Ducky looked at her with admiration. "I really must ask you over for dinner. Mother would love to talk with you."

"They cleaned house. I wounded him when he tried to grab Zach. After that he was a liability," Gibbs said.

"Once, again, I suggest Commander Tanner may be involved. All the evidence says he stole the software. He cleared out his bank accounts. He likely killed this man. You have to admit from an investigator's point of view, the pieces fit together quite well," she said as Gibbs left autopsy. It was clear the boss was not pleased with her conclusion. "Or not."

Gibbs paid a visit to Abby, learning the weapon used to kill the man. He left the lab and walked to the elevator, hitting the button with frustration. The doors opened to reveal Jenny, and she wasn't the person he wanted to see right now. The married couple was avoiding one another, and the tension surrounding them was too thick to be cut with a knife. A chainsaw was better suited to severe the tension. Both put up their professional walls as he prevented the doors from closing.

"You getting off, Director?"

"Looking for you actually. I saw Ducky's report on the body downstairs," she told him as he stepped inside the elevator, and the doors closed.

"That was fast."

"One of the perks of being Director. I get to read all the good reports. What's next, Jethro?"

As soon as the elevator stopped, he smacked the button for the doors to open. He wasn't sure of the next step, and she didn't need to know about his uncertainty. Also, she didn't need to realize he was getting attached to Zach. Knowing Jen, she most likely knew that fact. Jethro knew he needed to exit the elevator.

"Finishing this conversation."

"Don't give me a hard time," she answered in half plea and half order. She hit the button, watching the doors slide shut. She pressed the button to her level and turned to face him.

"I didn't realize I was."

"The man who supposedly kidnapped Commander Tanner is lying dead in our autopsy room. Tanner is looking less and less like a victim."

"You want back in the field again, Jen?" he asked, looking at her. The elevator stopped on her floor, and the two of them exited.

"Tanner has technology that could set back our intelligence monitoring thirty years. Pardon me for taking an interest," she snapped.

"And here I thought you just wanted an excuse to spend time together," he shot back. He hadn't been coming home to her although he knew she needed him. One small blessing was the twins staying with his father for two weeks as they did nearly every summer. Lizzie and Katie didn't need to see their parents this way.

"I just want to know that this is about more than a fatherless child to you."

"Boss!" McGee said as Gibbs and the Director stopped in the hallway near the stairs.

Jenny looked at the agent, annoyed with him but more annoyed with her husband. "Didn't you notice that we're in the middle of a conversation, Agent McGee!"

McGee was taken aback. The polite agent hadn't realized he was interrupting or that Director Shepard had taken some of her anger out on him. "Sorry. Should I come back?" he asked.

"No," Gibbs said while Jenny said yes.

"I'm simply trying to solve your case here, Director," Gibbs said to her. The heated glare from her hadn't phased him.

"Speak," she said, giving McGee the command like he was a lap dog. She glanced at her husband several times and wondered what was going through his mind. She couldn't bring herself to ask him if he had been feeling the same way she had.

"Commander Wilder is here. He works with Commander Tanner at Q and R," he told them. Gibbs nodded and left to speak with Commander Wilder. He had brought a few things for Zach. The team continued to work diligently. Abby had found Commander Tanner's prints on the murder weapon. With Ziva calling in a favor from the CIA, they learned Commander Tanner was framed, and the framing was done inside Q and R. They found Tanner in a garage near Coleman Park. He had been tortured and beaten by his captors but had not given them the code for Honor. Commander Wilder had been behind the whole frame up. Zach and his father were reunited at NCIS headquarters later that night.

At the end of the day, the case reports had been done and turned in. The last few days had been more than rough, and the case had taken a toll on Gibbs. He turned off his desk lamp and let out a heavy sigh, grappling with the decision to go home or not. The separation between husband and wife had been put in place for a particular reason. He drove home and sat in the parked car for several minutes. He stepped into the house and felt the quiet surround him. He put his keys down on the small table in the foyer and took his coat off, putting it on the rack. He quietly walked upstairs and pushed the bedroom door open. He could see the form of Jen's body under the covers. The rarely used television in the armoire was playing an old family movie. He smiled softly at the sight of Katie and Lizzie at six years old in their matching Easter dresses and scrambling to find their eggs. He swallowed hard at the sight of Jenny with a three-year-old boy in her arms. The dark haired toddler was laughing and watching the girls intently. Jethro could remember that Easter without the help of a home movie. He took off his shoes and walked over, slipping into bed and putting an arm over his wife. On top of the covers, tissues were scattered and an empty glass was next to the nearly drained bottle of bourbon.

"Jethro," her voice was barely above a whisper and hoarse from crying.

"I'm right here, Jen."

She turned over, facing him. He sighed heavily, seeing the mascara smeared across her cheeks. "I'm sorry," she told him, apologizing for her behavior and something that happened years ago.

"What have I told you? It wasn't your fault," he reprimanded her softly. "Nothing could be done."

She nodded her head, burying her face into his chest. She started to cry when his arms went around her tightly. "Jethro, I'm still sorry I couldn't give you a son."

He kissed her head. "You did give me a son. I wouldn't trade the time we had with him either." Three years after the twins, she and Jethro had a son, Jasper. He had been a complete surprise and was named after her father. He lost a battle with congestive heart failure at the age of six. Jasper's future seemed promising after a heart transplant at the age of five, but his body rejecting the organ robbed him of celebrating any more birthdays. Neither one of them talked about it for years. The pain was buried deep inside but always resurfaced on the anniversary of his death or his birthday. Jasper would be eighteen years old, and his mother was feeling the same guilt she felt when he slipped away. She had been the one with a family history of heart problems.

Jen barely nodded her head, wiping at her eyes as she pulled away from his chest. She sat up in bed and cleared her throat as she picked up the scattered tissues. Her eyes stared at the television. Her thoughts were drifting back to Easter morning.

Jasper hadn't wanted to leave his mother's side all morning. He had crawled into bed with her and Jethro around four in the morning and stayed snuggled close to her. She woke up before the alarm went off at 0700. When she stepped out of the bathroom around 0745, she found her boys sitting side by side in bed and eating cereal. She shook her head at them. "Don't make a mess. That goes for you too, Jethro."

Jasper looked up at his father, and his father smirked at him. "Don't look at me. You're the one that spilled milk."

"Nooo, not me," his son replied.

"Uh huh. It was you, Jasper."

Jen rolled her eyes at both of them. They would go back and forth all day if they could. "That's enough. Are you done?"

Jasper nodded his head and handed over the cereal bowl. "Yes, ma'am."

She smiled at him being polite, taking the cereal bowl and holding out her arms for him. He jumped into her arms and slipped his arms around her neck, kissing her cheek. "Are you ready for Easter?"

Jasper's blue eyes widened as he realized what day it was. Easter meant church, candy, and an Easter egg hunt along with lunch at his grandparent's house in Georgetown. Jethro looked at Jen with amusement as Jasper started shouting about Easter and wriggling out of her arms. He bolted out of the room to wake his sisters up. She walked over to her husband's side of bed. "You need to get out of bed and stop making messes. You're worse than Jasper."

Jethro smirked at her and grabbed her by the wrists, pulling her into his lap. "He gets it from me," he said, placing a kiss on her lips.

"And his sweet disposition is from you too, Jethro?"

"Hey! I can be sweet."

She laughed at him. "You're sweet when you want something," she told him before indulging in a second kiss. "I love you and want more, but we should probably rescue Jasper. The girls might attack him for being woken up." The girls loved their little brother, but he could be annoying.

"Girls? You mean Katie?"

Jen rolled her eyes at him and pushed herself out of his lap. She wasn't halfway across the hall before Jasper ran into her, crying and rubbing at his eyes. "Honey, what's the matter?" she asked, lifting him up. He sniffled and held his hand over his eye. "Show mommy what happened."

He pointed towards the girls' room and moved his hand from his eye. "She hit me!"

"Katie?"

Jasper nodded his head and rested his head against his mom's shoulder as he sniffled and rubbed his eyes. "It hurts."

"I bet it does." Jethro patted his son on the back and looked at his wife. "I got it. I'll handle double trouble. You get him calmed down." Jasper didn't want anyone but his mother if he was hurt or sick.

Inside his daughters' bedroom, Jethro learned Katie had hit her brother in the face with a pillow because he had jumped on her bed and continued jumping to wake her up. At the age of six, Katie was not a morning person. If Jen wouldn't yell at him, Jethro would start the kid on coffee. Lizzie listened to her father's talk for a few minutes before leaving the bedroom. She hadn't done anything to Jasper, so the lecture wasn't for her ears. Jen looked at her daughter as she entered the bathroom but was splashed in the face by Jasper who giggled and apologized.

"What is it, Lizzie?"

"Is Jasper okay?"

She looked behind her and nodded her head. "He's fine. Get a towel please?" Jen asked before focusing her attention on washing her son's hair. Lizzie handed her mother a towel and sat on the edge of the tub.

"I don't want to wear my dress."

"Lizzie, honey…please. Your grandmother will have a fit if you don't wear the dress she bought." She rinsed the shampoo out of Jasper's hair and helped him sit up. He grabbed a washcloth and wiped his face.

"I don't wear dresses," he said as he wiped his face.

Jenny laughed at him and ruffled his wet hair. "That's right. You don't wear dresses. You'll wear a suit like your father." She looked at Elizabeth. "Get dressed, please." She watched Lizzie slide off the edge of the tub and go to her room.

Surprisingly, the family made it to church on time. Jethro had saved them from running late. He stopped Jasper from going outside and playing with the dog. The girls were in matching yellow dresses their grandmother had purchased for them, and the boys looked handsome in their suits and matching ties. After church, the rest of the day was spent in Georgetown. The girls had cleaned Jasper Shepard out of all the candy he had stashed in his pockets, and Helen Shepard made a fuss over how cute the girls were in their Easter dresses. Jasper played shy at his grandparent's home and stuck to his mother like glue. With her help, he had found the golden egg and ran to his grandfather with it.

The older Jasper smiled at his grandson. "I knew you'd find it." He handed him a twenty dollar bill. "Be careful with that," he instructed and smiled when he received a hug. Jasper ran back over to his mother to show her.

Jen knelt down and smiled at him, brushing his hair away from his eyes. He needed a haircut. "You did a good job, Jasper."

He smiled proudly and put his arms around her neck, hugging her tightly. "I love you, mommy," he whispered, kissing her.

"Jen?"

She looked at him, dabbing at her eyes and thinking about how much Jasper had looked like his father. He had the same dark hair like Jethro had before turning gray and those intense, piercing blue eyes. She couldn't help wondering who her son would be if he had lived. She reached out and stroked her husband's face softly. "He looked so much like you."

Jethro took her hand and kissed her fingers. "You know, I'm always up for trying."

She let out a small laugh. "At our age?"

He shrugged his shoulders as he sat up, pulling her against his side. "You never know…could be fun."

"The trying, Jethro?"

"That too…but it could be fun to have a baby."

She titled her head to the side, staring at her husband like he'd lost his mind. The baby making days were over for the two of them. She was too close to fifty years old, and he was over fifty. Jenny couldn't imagine running an agency and starting over with a baby. "Are you becoming senile?"

He shook his head. "Nope. Just an idea."

"I don't know if I could handle a disappointment," she answered softly.

He nodded his head and rubbed her back in circles. Every year, she turned him down on the idea of having another child. After a decade of being turned down, Jethro had given up. She couldn't handle another disappointment or more years of blaming herself. The two of them lay back down. Jen rested her head against his chest and stared at the television. Her husband rubbing her back and his presence soothed her. Soon, her eyes were heavy, and she was drifting into slumber.