TONY

Everything Hetty said was only making Tony feel more confused and more at a loss as to why they were here. Sure, this day had been three hours longer than usual, but he should still be able to keep up. "Who is this asset?"

"Suzana Zoranović." The name meant nothing to Tony, and neither Gibbs nor McGee showed any glimmer of recognition. "For a long time she was only a name, providing information through Serbian back channels and to local sources who passed it on to us, but recently her work put her in some danger. When the situation was investigated certain... unexpected things came to light. Eventually she was linked with someone who has been missing for several years. Those in the know assumed she had been killed in the line, and until now there was no evidence to the contrary."

"A dangerous assumption." Gibbs sounded almost angry.

Hetty nodded. "But an inevitable one when one runs out of leads to follow and hope to chase, when all the evidence seems to say one thing, and one thing only. I'm sure you've been involved in cases like that, Agent Gibbs." Her words were matter of fact, but her tone was surprisingly gentle. "Those cases one is forced to allow to grow cold in order to preserve one's sanity. Where all the facts point to an end that cannot be proven but seems the only possible conclusion."

Gibbs' face took on a pinched look, and Tony could empathise. They good at what they did, more likely to solve cold cases than create them, but even the best in the business couldn't be in law enforcement this long and get it right every time. In the decade or so he'd been on Gibbs' team, they'd maintained an average that was the envy of the agency, but it was always the failures that haunted them the most.

"Until very recently the particular details of this case were being investigated way above all of our pay grades," she continued. "But if Director Vance is correct, it seems likely you and your agents may know more about her than anyone could have imagined."

Her cryptic comment was greeted with a moment of complete silence. Tony couldn't help noticing that the OSP agents looked just as confused as he felt, which wasn't particularly comforting.

He opened his mouth to demand clarification, but was interrupted by a piercing whistle from the gallery above them.

A blond guy with spectacles was leaning over the railing. Tony tried to imagine Leon summoning them this way back at the Navy Yard, and failed. I've a feeling we're not in DC any more, Toto.

"We got a hit on facial rec, and you're not gonna believe it," he said with a grin. "Hey, McGee, Gibbs, good to see you again." He looked like he should be surfing or hanging out on the boardwalk, but clearly he was a fixture here.

"Thank you, Mr Beale," Hetty called up, and then gestured for the rest of them to follow her up the stairs. "We didn't know whether we would find the information we needed through the usual channels, which is part of the reason I requested Leon send you. However, you can confirm our findings and I believe your presence will still be most beneficial."

Hetty led them up the stairs with the speed and ease of a woman half her age. She may not have looked the part, but Tony no longer doubted her ability to run this place. When Gibbs had called her a legend, he hadn't been kidding.

The Ops centre was a huge contrast from the rest of the building, and once again Tony felt like he'd fallen down the rabbit hole as they moved from the airy, sunlit gallery into semi darkness, surrounded by displays and screens, where the glow from the massed electronics turned everything and everyone an eerie shade of blue.

Even he could tell that the high tech capabilities they had here rivalled those in MTAC, and it was easy to see why McGee had raved about this place.

He didn't have long to think about that, though. Gibbs stopped short, and Tony almost walked into him, but his protest died on his lips when he saw the picture on the huge screen. The woman had long, wavy hair that was golden brown, almost blonde, and her face showed subtle changes and differences from Tony's memories, but even so, she was unmistakably...

"Kate," supplied McGee, sounding almost as stunned as Tony felt.

"Wait, you know her?" Kensi demanded.

"I think," said Gibbs, his voice strained, "that now would be a good time to tell us exactly what's going on here, Ms Lange."