Chapter Six

Tony arrived at the new hospital room feeling as if his legs were made of rubber. What little fuel he had left in the tank was running out and all he wanted to do was check on Gibbs then get some rest for a few hours before getting back to work. Opening the door, he entered the room to see Jackson was reading to the still comatose Gibbs. He sat down, nodded at Jackson, stuck his hands in his overcoat pockets, and listened to Jackson read. Jackson's voice lulled Tony into a sense of security. He was warm and comfortable and content for the first time in days. It didn't take long for sleep to overtake Tony.

Jackson looked over at the young man and smiled. He knew what his son thought of Tony. In some ways they appeared to be completely different, yet in many ways they were the same sort of man. These were dedicated men, who had their faults but in essence were very good men willing to risk their lives for others. Jackson continued to read.

Feeling more than a little too warm from still having his overcoat on, Tony slowly opened his eyes. Jackson was gone and in his place sitting in the chair beside the bed was Ziva. She was talking to Gibbs in Hebrew, which amused him. Instinctively, he smiled. Ziva returned the smile.

"Hello, Tony," she said.

"Ziva," the smile widened.

"You must have needed sleep," she remarked.

"Yeah, I was tired," he said. "I feel much better now."

He sat up and undid his overcoat then slipped it off. Tony looked at his watch. It was eight o'clock at night.

"Where's Jackson?" he asked.

"Abby, McGee, and Delilah took him to dinner and convinced him to make it an early night. He is too old to push himself too hard," she said.

"I'm glad they did that," replied Tony.

"He doesn't want to leave his son, but I told him that I'd be here," she said.

"You don't like to visit during normal hours, do you?" teased Tony.

She grinned, "When have I ever been normal, Tony?"

He chuckled. It was a good point. Nothing had ever been normal with Ziva.

"You are beautiful, talented, dangerous, and special, but not normal," he said.

Ziva's eyes softened. Here they were alone with a comatose Gibbs. Somehow it seemed the right place and the right time to tell him about his son, especially since he was leading a team during an investigation that was getting more and more dangerous.

"Tony, we need to talk about something… something very important," she said.

"Ziva, I'm always here for you and I'm always willing to talk," he said.

"I know," she said then paused. "I need you to listen to me and to try and understand. I know you will be angry with me, very angry, but I ask that you understand. I ask that you try and see from my perspective."

"Ziva, are you married?" he asked. "Please, don't tell me that you are married. You can hide that fact from me if you want. I don't think I could handle it right now."

His heart was suddenly beating fast. He still loved her. Hell, he always would love her.

Ziva laughed, "No, Tony, I am not married."

She reached into her pocket and took out a wallet. With wallet in hand she offered Tony pictures of a child. The child was beautiful. He had hair like Ziva and olive skin. Looking closely, Tony noticed that the child had light eyes.

"Who is this?" he asked starting to feel anxious.

"It's my son. His name is Matan. It means gift," she said.

The boy wasn't that old, which was another way of Tony's mind of saying that he'd be about the right age for the time they spent in Israel together. Suddenly, he felt weak and tired. He couldn't believe what he was contemplating.

"How old is he, Ziva?"

"Two years and five months," she said.

"Ziva, is he my son?" asked Tony.

"Yes, ahuvi sheli," she said softly then waited for the storm.

"He's mine," Tony said as he stared at the pictures. He felt as if he was gunshot, but he tried to remain calm. There was a lot of explaining that needed to be done and he was going to let her explain.

"Talk. I'm listening," he said.

"I was debating falling off the grid and going to South America to disappear until I could decide what to do with my life when I found out I was pregnant. It was then that I knew this child was a gift and I needed to protect it. I met with Orli and told her of my situation and she understood how I felt. As Director of Mossad, she checked some things out and I held dual citizenship with Israel and America, so she brought me back into Mossad in order to protect me. Aunt Nettie helps take care of him, so does Hannah, my cousin. He is spoiled and loved. Hannah is married with children. My uncle raises Arabian horses, so he spends time there, also. He is well protected and taken care of," she explained.

"But he doesn't know his father. He doesn't know me. I don't know him. It sounds nice and sweet, but I'm his father and I'm not in the picture," growled Tony.

"I have told him about you. He knows who his father is and what he does. He speaks Hebrew and English. His middle name is Anthony," she said. "He loves movies more than books, which proves that he is your son."

"Ziva, you should have told me. I would have come to be with you and him," said Tony. "Nothing would have stopped me from being with the two of you."

"Tony," she started to speak.

"Ziva, I'd have left NCIS and moved to Israel to be with you," he said.

"Tony, you don't belong in Israel. What would you have done there?" she asked him.

"I would have been with the woman I love and my child," he said.

Ziva closed her eyes. It sounded good, but it would have been very difficult for him. From the language to the weather to the lifestyle and culture, it was all foreign to him. She didn't want to ruin his life.

"It is not that simple," she said.

"And it isn't as complicated as you think, Ziva. You didn't even think about me. I've got a son. I mean I've got a son with you. I can't even begin to image the fact that you had our child and you didn't even text me," he raged.

"Tony…"

She tried to stop him, but he was too far gone. He needed to vent and there was no stopping him.

"I did what you wanted. After I told you that I loved you, I let you stay in Israel because that was what you had to do. I did what was best for you, but I assumed you loved me, too. There you are pregnant and you don't call me to tell me about it. I have a son and you even don't call me. You were wrong to do that. You should have involved me. I should be involved in his life. I don't care if it was in Israel, I would have been there. I can change and adapt," his tirade continued then his smart phone rang.

He stopped and answered the phone.

"DiNozzo," he said.

"I have your mole. Meet me," said Colt.

"Where?"

"U Street Corridor – the Bohemian Caverns," he said. "Make it in an hour. We can have a few drinks, a nosh, and exchange some information."

"I'll be there," he said then hung up.

"Tony, where are you going?" Ziva asked.

"Contact with information on who shot Gibbs," he snapped. "I have to go, but we aren't done here."

"You mean you have to yell at me more," she said.

Tony glared at her.

"I understand you are angry and I accept that, but you also need to get beyond your anger. I won't stop you from seeing Matan and being part of his life, but I do not think I can leave Israel with him. At least not yet because he is safe there and that is most important to me," she said.

"Only my son would be safe in Israel, a country surrounded by enemies," he sighed.

Ziva smiled. He was right. Israel was a dangerous country, but her enemies and her father's enemies wouldn't try anything there.

"I need to go," he said. "I'll try to calm down."

He turned to leave, but she stopped him at the door.

"Tony, I still do love you," she said.

He didn't know how to respond to that right now, so he opened the door and left. Ziva felt her emotions coming to the surface. The burn of tears was threatening her eyes. Suddenly, she felt a pressure on her right hand. She looked at her hand and saw Gibbs hand was holding hers. Looking at his face, she saw that his eyes were open and he was staring at her.

"It'll be okay," he said in a hoarse rough voice.

"Oh, Gibbs," she said then started to cry.

NCIS

Bohemian Caverns interior was decorated to give the impression of a cave. Tony arrived and found Colt already seated and listened to a jazz combo. He was nursing a whiskey. When he saw Tony, he smiled.

"Sit and have a drink," said Colt.

Tony sat down.

"You know the mole?" he asked.

"Yeah, I know the mole and I must say that it was a bit of genius to bring him out. You see I found Malcolm Dobbs has some money stowed away in Russia," said Colt.

"Dobbs. He worked doing black ops for NCIS in Russia," said Tony.

"Yeah, well, if we exit this place together and there are a couple of hit men waiting for us then he is most definitely your mole," smiled Colt.

"You leaked it to Dobbs that you know," said Tony.

Colt smiled.

"I am merely giving you empirical proof," said Colt. "He is going to want me dead and probably you dead."

Tony waved a waitress over. She came over and handed him a menu. He smiled.

"I'll start with what he is having to drink," said Tony.

"And I'll have another," said Colt.

She smiled and headed off to get them their drinks.

"Don't get too drunk," said Tony. "I don't want to be in a gunfight with a drunk protecting my six."

"I shoot better when I'm drunk," said Colt.

For the next two hours they ate, nursed drinks, and listened to music. Tony didn't let Vance or McGee know what he was up to just in case there was no hit men waiting for them. Colt seemed relaxed as if he had no worries. Tony tried to see cool, calm, and collected, but his stomach was turning and his nerves working overtime.

"Calm down," said Colt. "I'm good at gunfights. I'm Wyatt Fucking Earp."

"You're nuts," said Tony.

"You should be happy that I'm nuts," said Colt. "Nuts survives bad situations like this one. I've clocked two guys who have been paying extra attention to us. What kind of sidearm do you have?"

"Glock 22."

"Me, too," said Colt. "When you get a chance I'd put it in your overcoat pocket. You don't want to have to do quick draw when people come gunning for you."

"You've lived an interesting life, haven't you?" said Tony.

"You have no idea, DiNozzo," he smiled. "Trust me we'll do fine and you'll owe me an expensive bottle of Irish."

"Dobbs," Tony said to himself.

He took his smart phone out and sent a text to McGee. Dobbs may be mole. Tell Vance then bring him in. I'll have proof soon.

It didn't take McGee long to respond. Tony, I'll call Vance. We'll bring in Dobbs. Be careful.

Somehow McGee knew he was doing something stupid. Tony laughed then he put his smart phone away.

"You have proof about the money in Russia?" asked Tony.

Colt smirked then he reached into his pant pocket and took out a thumb drive. He tossed it to Tony, who caught it and grinned back.

"It's all on the thumb drive. You can nail him with this," said Colt.

"I definitely owe you more than a bottle of Irish," said Tony.

NCIS

Ducky showed up after Ziva called him about Gibbs waking up. The net person to show up was Abby along with Delilah and Jackson. Gibbs was chewing on ice chips in order to get rid of his dry throat and his doctor was reviewing and upgrading his chart.

"Well, it looks like he is out of the woods," said the doctor. "Now it is about recovery and rehabbing."

"I want some coffee," rasped Gibbs.

"Maybe in a day or two," said the doctor.

"How about in the morning? A marine needs his coffee," growled Gibbs.

"Well see," sighed the doctor. "I'll let you have five minutes with him. He needs rest."

"I need coffee," said Gibbs, "and DiNozzo. Where is DiNozzo?"

"He working," said Jackson.

"Anthony is in charge of the investigation you were on," said Ducky.

McGee walked into the hospital room. He smiled when he saw McGee.

"McGee tell Vance that the mole is…" started Gibbs.

"Malcolm Dobbs," finished McGee.

"How did you know?" he growled.

"Tony," smiled Gibbs.

"I definitely need to talk to DiNozzo," mumbled Gibbs.

The doctor came back into the room.

"Closing time," he said.

"We are staying and we will make sure he sleeps," said Ziva. "Trust me."

The doctor sighed and nodded then left. A happy Abby and Ziva made themselves comfortable.

NCIS

Tony and Colt exited the Caverns. It was cold out and late. Tony looked over at the Charger where he parked it. He clocked two men near it, while Colt appeared to be more drunk than he was. They had two men in front of them and two behind them.

"Hey, Tony, you're driving because walking is enough for me," said Colt.

Colt swayed a little. Tony wanted to smile but he fought it off. He kept his hands in his pockets with his right hand hold his Glock.

"Let's go to me car," he said.

"I guess I don't handle my booze like I used to," said Colt.

Both men kept an eye on the men in front of them. Colt heard someone behind him. Instead of playing the drunk any longer, he reached for his Glock, which was tucked into his belt and hidden by his overcoat, pulled it, and turned to fire. His instincts were right because two shooters were behind them.

Tony drew his Glock and started firing at the two shooters coming towards him. For a moment he felt like a sheriff in a shootout in the old West, as he and Colt took on the bad guys. Colt took care of his two shooters, while Tony took care of his, though he paid a price. He felt the burn in his right side from a bullet grazing him. The gunfight was over.

"Goddamn, I'm good at this," said Colt.

"You are nuts," sighed Tony.