A/N: Well, now the crime is solved, but who was shot? And what about Ziva and Tony? Keep reading to find out :)
Zoyarose: You're about to find out :) Hope you enjoy it!
Livluvdance2992: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it, and keep reading to find out!
Disclaimer: I own only what I made up.
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Ziva's head was spinning. She was staring straight ahead of her at the wall just a few feet from her face. For the past couple days, she and the rest of the team had been working avidly on solving the case. It was a horrible case. Anything involving the death of a child is terrible. Ziva had learned so much about the other members of the team, and it had come to a sense of relief when the crime had been solved there at Barge's house. That was, however, before any triggers were pulled.
Ziva thought about her relationship with Tony. Ever since they had met, there had been undeniable tension between the two of them. She knew the others had noticed it at different occasions. This case somehow let her reveal it to herself though. For the first time ever, Ziva had completely let her guard down for Tony and showed him herself in complete vulnerability. She had gone to him and apologized, cried in front of him, slept with him, held him, and been held by him. She felt closer to Tony over the past couple days than she had the entire time of knowing him. She knew that was proof that her feelings for him were becoming overwhelming. Ziva knew that she truly loved Tony. It had been made obvious to her. She also knew the main factor that kept her from confessing her true feelings to him was the fact that Tony had been with so many other girls, and Ziva was frightened that he did not share the feelings she had for him. This was why Ziva had gone to Abby earlier in the day. Abby had been absolutely right. She had told Ziva to tell Tony exactly how she felt, and Ziva had said she would tell him after the case was solved. She loved him. Tears welled up in Ziva's eyes as the ambulance she was riding in hit a bump in the road and she looked down at the unconscious body lying in front of her, knowing that now she may never have the chance to tell him her true feelings.
"Barge, I need you to back away and put the gun on the bed," Gibbs ordered. Ziva watched as Barge hesitantly obeyed her boss. Barge released Lansing and placed the gun on the bed. Ziva couldn't help but feel a slight smile forming and tried to suppress it. This case was finally solved. They had won. But then, the unthinkable happened.
"Now, I'm-" Gibbs was interrupted and Ziva unknowingly took a deep breath and held it as she saw Lansing lunge for the gun on the bed. Ziva held her breath and her heart raced during the altercation. But, she did what she was trained to do. She shot. So did Gibbs, Tony, McGee…and Lansing. She felt satisfaction in seeing Lansing drop to the floor, dead. However, she hadn't yet noticed what had happened behind her to her right.
"Shit, boss!" McGee exclaimed. Ziva turned to see Tony lying on the floor, his hand on his chest, slowly being covered by his own blood.
"Call an ambulance," Gibbs instructed McGee who then stepped out into the hallway to obey. Gibbs then knelt beside Tony and quickly began applying pressure to his chest wound.
"McGee is calling for help, okay?" Gibbs said quietly to his senior field agent who was breathing irregularly. Ziva hadn't moved. She stood, frozen. Her heart was racing and her blood was boiling. She could feel her heart breaking inside her chest at the sight of the man that she loved lying helplessly on the floor in front of her.
"Boss," Tony gasped. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry…for everything…I know…I broke the rules…But don't…punish…her." Ziva felt tears rimming her eyes. She knew exactly what Tony was talking about, even if he himself didn't realize what he was saying.
"Ambulance is on its way, boss," McGee said, reentering the room. Gibbs nodded.
"Hear that?" Gibbs said, keeping the pressure on Tony's chest. "Just stay with me."
"Boss," Tony continued. "I want you to know…I'm sorry…for anything I've done…I know it seems…like I take things as a joke…but I want you to know…that working for you…has been one of the best things…to ever happen to me…I've loved every…minute…of it…and I want to…thank you for that." By this point, tears were streaming down Ziva's face, and she wasn't bothering to wipe them away. McGee was trying himself to hold back tears.
"Listen to me Tony," Gibbs said softly. "You're one of the best, strongest people I've ever worked with, and you're not giving up." Tony smiled and his eyes began to close. "Tony! Keep your eyes open. Stay with me."
"I need some air," Ziva said in an extremely strained voice and quickly exited the room. Seconds later, McGee followed her. She had gone out and sat on the front porch. McGee sat beside her in silence for a moment.
"It isn't fair," Ziva said, looking down at the concrete. McGee nodded his head.
"I know," he agreed. "But Tony's a strong guy."
"Being a strong person does not mean a bullet to the heart cannot ki…well, you know," Ziva said, the tears rimming her eyes again.
"Tony's gonna be okay, Ziva," McGee assured her, putting his arm around her shoulders.
"But what if he isn't?" Ziva asked as tears began to escape her eyes again. She rested her head on McGee's shoulder and he tried his best to comfort her.
"Don't worry," he said. "He will be."
The ambulance had arrived a minute later, and Gibbs had instructed Ziva to ride with Tony. She looked toward the windshield of the ambulance and noticed they were pulling into the hospital parking lot. Tony was rushed out of the ambulance and into the hospital where he was taken to the operating room for surgery. Gibbs, Ziva, and McGee sat anxiously in the waiting room while Tony was having his operation. Suddenly, the door opened and Abby and Jenny rushed inside.
"Ziva!" Abby exclaimed and ran toward her. Ziva greeted Abby with a huge, comforting hug. "Ziva, I'm so sorry. But I know he'll be okay." The two girls pulled away and Ziva nodded, hoping Abby was right.
"Any word recently?" Jenny asked. Gibbs shook his head.
"He's still in surgery," he replied. At that point, Ducky and Palmer entered the room as well.
"Hello everyone," Ducky greeted grimly. "Anthony is still in surgery, I presume?"
"Yes he is," Ziva replied with a lump in her throat.
"Very well," Ducky said. "Then all we can do is wait and hope for the best." They sat and waited for what seemed like years. No one spoke, and if they did, it was very brief and simply a reassuring word or two. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the doctor came to greet them.
"Are you all here for Anthony DiNozzo?" he asked.
"Yes," Gibbs responded. "How is he?"
"The surgery went well," the doctor replied to which everyone sighed in deep relief. "He is in recovery."
"When may we see him?" Ducky inquired.
"He is unconscious and needs rest," the doctor replied. "Tomorrow he may have visitors."
"Thank you doctor," Gibbs said and the doctor left. Gibbs turned to his team. "Go home. Try to get some rest. We'll come back tomorrow." As everyone started to leave, Abby pulled Ziva aside.
"Do you want to stay at my place tonight?" she offered. "You know, for company, to talk."
"Yes," Ziva replied after a moment of consideration. "I would like that."
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"So, how are you doing?" Abby asked. She and Ziva were sitting on the couch staring at the Chinese food they had ordered, neither of them having an appetite. Ziva sighed.
"I do not know," she replied honestly. "I have so many emotions going through me right now." Abby nodded.
"I can only imagine," she said. "Wanna talk about it?" Ziva didn't answer for almost a minute.
"It was so scary," she began. "First I did not know that he had been shot. I was thrilled that Lansing was dead and the case was over. Then, I saw Tony, and I instantly felt angry, terrified, helpless…so many different things at once. In the ambulance and at the hospital I felt uneasy, anxious, and still terrified. And when the doctor said he would be okay, I experienced a lot of happiness and relief. But I still feel helpless. I just wish that this had never happened."
"I know exactly what you mean," Abby said. "And it's totally okay and normal that you felt all of that. It would be frightening if you didn't, actually. He's your partner. He's your friend. He's…the man you're in love with." Ziva stirred her rice a little bit with the chopstick in her hand.
"Yes, that is all true," Ziva admitted. "Abby, I should have listened to you earlier. I do not know what I would have done if he…" Abby nodded.
"I don't even want to think about that," Abby agreed. "But you still have plenty of time to talk to him." Ziva shook her head.
"That is what I said to myself earlier," she said. "I told myself that I would talk to Tony after we had solved the case. Well, we solved the case and then I nearly lost him. I may not have ever had the chance to tell him, Abby. So I cannot wait any longer under the false pretense that I have plenty of time. That may not be true. Tomorrow, I am telling him everything." Abby smiled again. She was happy for Ziva. Ziva had admitted her feelings and was about to tell Tony how she felt. Abby just hoped that everything would work out.
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A/N: Well, just so you all know, the next chapter will be the final chapter. I really hope you all enjoyed this one, and please, please review and tell me what you thought! I am very excited to be finishing this story, and I hope you are all as excited about the final chapter coming up as I am. I hope you enjoyed :)
