He just looks at her, waiting for her to finish the story.

"Then what?" he prompts her.

"He took me to the hospital. He made me call my mother. Then, he left."

"He left you alone, in the hospital? In labor? Without your mother there?"

"Yes," she nods.

"He didn't wait for you to have the baby?"

"No. I was in labor for thirty six hours."

"Did they have to do a c-section?"

"No. He came out in two pushes."

"Then why were you in labor for thirty six hours?"

"I went from a one to a three, in two hours. Then I went from a three, to a five, in an hour. I stayed at five for twenty hours, and then I finally got to six."

"And it took you another thirteen hours to get from six to ten?"

"It took me ten hours to get from a six to an eight. The last part was the quickest."

"Why didn't you just have a c-section? You had to be exhausted by then."

"I refused."

"So did Caleb's father come to see him, after he was born?"

"My mother called him. He came to the hospital and..." she trails off.

"And what?"

February 19th, 1998-0900

Ziva lies in her bed, holding her baby, as he sleeps. Her mother comes back into the room. She takes a seat, in the chair next to the bed.

"Ziva..."

"Did you talk to him?"

"Yes."

"Is he coming?"

"He already came. He just left."

"He never came to see Caleb."

"Ziva he is not going to."

"Why not?"

"He does not want a baby. He brought papers with him."

"Papers? What kind of papers?"

"He signed over his parental rights."

"What does that mean?"

"He is walking away. He wants no part of Caleb's life."

"This is not fair."

"Are you still sure that you want to do this? You can walk out of this hospital, and be done. You do not have to leave here with a baby."

"How can you even say that? I am not leaving here without him."

"Who is going to take care of him?"

"I will."

"You have to go to school."

"I can stay home."

"No, you will not, stay home. You will go to school. You will finish school. Do you hear me?"

"What if I choose not to?"

"That is not an option. You will finish school."

"What am I supposed to do with him, while I am in school."

"Ziva, let me take care of him."

"For how long?"

"We have discussed this. It is what is best for him. You are too young. You cannot take care of him."

He watches her, as she talks about the past. When she stops, she looks up, at him.

"He's almost grown now. He's nearly as tall as I am. He is not a baby, anymore. I missed everything that was important in his life. I chose a career, over my own son. What kind of person could do that?"

"Ziva, no matter how old he is, he's always going to be your baby. He is always going to be yours, even when he's eighty. You don't have all the blame here. It was out of your control."

"What did my father do?"

"He made sure that you were assigned mission, after mission, so that you couldn't have the chance to see Caleb."

"Sometimes, I wish that he had..."

He cuts her off, "No you don't."

"We should get going."

"Yeah," he nods in agreement.

When they arrive back at NCIS Ziva takes some evidence down to Abby. She walks into the lab, and finds Abby standing in front of the computer.

"Where is Caleb?"

"In the bathroom. He just left, like two and a half seconds ago."

"I brought these for you," Ziva shows her.

Abby signs the clipboard. She stands in front of the table, and stares at Ziva, who stands on the other side.

"What?"

"Can I ask you now?"

"No. Did you ask him?"

"He wouldn't tell me anything. He is immune to my interrogation techniques."

"He's probably immune to all interrogation techniques."

"How long is he here for?"

"A while."

"Why is he here?"

"He's visiting."

"Why is he visiting you?"

"He likes me."

"Is he family?"

"Yes."

"He's so..."

"He looks like Malibu Ken? I know."

"Tony's description?" Abby guesses.

"Should I be concerned? Do you think he played with Barbie's as a child?"

"It wouldn't surprise me. Ziva, please talk to me."

"I can't."

"Can't, or won't?" A voice asks from the doorway.

She spins around, and looks at Caleb. He walks into the room stopping next to Ziva. She looks over at him, "Caleb, it's your story to tell."

"I didn't think that you wanted me to tell anyone."

"She's going to find out eventually."

"Find out what?" Abby questions.

"But you can't tell Gibbs," Ziva warns, "I need to be the one to tell him."

"Can I tell her?" Caleb queries.

"Go ahead," Ziva nods.

"I am here, to stay, hopefully," Caleb begins.

"With Ziva?"

"Yes, he is going to stay with me," Ziva confirms.

"Why?" Abby wonders.

"I may have ran away from home."

"Why would you do that?"

"You don't have to live with Rivka. She is enough to make a sane person crazy."

"Rivka?" Abby furrows her brow, "Isn't that your mother?" she looks at Ziva.

"Yes," Ziva confirms.

"He's your... brother?" Abby looks at Ziva, in utter confusion.

Caleb shakes his head, "No, that is what Rivka would like the world to think."

"What do you mean?" Abby's head turns towards Caleb.

"She is my grandmother."

"Oh. Oh!"

"Ziva is my..."

"Mother? You're his mother? You're too young. He's thirteen so you would have been... fifteen? That is why you left the room, the other day? I... I don't know what to say."

"That you won't tell Gibbs."

"I won't tell him. I'm too much in shock, to tell anyone," she admits.

"I've got to go, I have work to do."

When she gets off the elevator Gibbs is waiting on her. She steps off the elevator, and he just looks at her.

"Do you need something?"

"Can you tell me why there is a kid in Abby's lab?"

"You met him?"

"Yes, I met him earlier. He's a nice kid. Why is he here?"

"Abby is watching him."

"Why is Abby babysitting? She is supposed to be working."

"It was a favor."

"For who?"

"For me."

"For you? You brought him?"

"Yes."

"Who is he?"

"His name is Caleb."

"Yes, I know that. Why do you have him?"

"He came to see me."

"See you why?"

"To visit."

"Who is he to you?"

"Can we do this somewhere else?"

"Ok," he points to the elevator. The doors come open, and they step in. He flips a switch, and the elevator is rendered motionless, and the lights go out. He stands on one side, and she stands on the other. He looks at her, waiting for her to begin.

"Have you ever made a decision, that you wish you didn't?"

"Lots of times."

"One that no matter how hard you try, you can never redeem yourself for?"

"More than once."

"A choice you wish you could make differently?"

"Yes."

"I have made a lot of bad choices. I have made the wrong decisions, more than once, or twice."

"We all have. You have to make mistakes, to learn from them."

"There are some mistakes that you don't have to make."

"Maybe. Ziva where is this going? What does this have to do with Caleb?"

"I should have told you, from the beginning."

"From the beginning? When? When you knew that he was coming?"

"I didn't know. It was a surprise. I got a call, when he was in the air, on his way here."

"From who?"

"Rivka."

"Your mother?"

She nods.

"A half-sibling?"

"No," she shakes her head.

He takes a moment, to think back, over the events of the past few days. A light bulb clicks, in his head.

"You couldn't understand how she could kill the father of her child. You understood why, but you didn't understand how she could do it, knowing the consequences. You could never do that. I didn't understand why."

"It wouldn't matter how much I hated him. It would never be enough."

"Because no matter how much you hate him, you love your son, more?" He guesses.

She nods, "Yes. I couldn't do that to him," she admits, on the verge of tears.
He takes a step towards her. He motions with his index finger, "Come here." She steps into his embrace. She clenches her jaw, in an attempt not to cry. The tears come, anyway.