Sorry about the wait. I suddenly had this huge twist to the story enter my head but it didn't reveal itself too well until I really started writing it down. It started out as ideas and became another 2 chapters LOL. And then I realised that this chapter wasn't completed or posted so I had to redo this as well. Hope you enjoy - the twist my surprise some...but that's a little later :)

Chapter 10

"Swat's getting antsy" Emily informed Derek.

The agent sighed in frustration. It had been a share stroke of luck that they had found this address. Derek didn't want anything to go wrong. He looked around at the others gathered with him. Reid, Emily, Tim and Tony. Behind them was one of the best Swat teams in town. They were located in an upper level warehouse no longer in use. Across the road was their target; Foyet's apartment building. The only problem was that in the 3 hours they had been watching, nothing had happened.

"These guys are trained to move" Tony noted, "not sit around"

Derek knew the NCIS agent was right. He scrubbed a hand over his head. "The longer we sit here the longer Foyet has a chance to escape"

"I think I know what we can do" Tim mused.

A few minutes later Tim was knocking on Foyet's door. "Super" he announced. When there was no answer he knocked again. "Super. We got a leak downstairs. I have to check your mains"

Still no reply. Tim crouched down at the door and opened the small carry case at his side. From it he extracted a fibre optic type tube with a camera installed at the end. Sliding it under the door he spoke to those listening in.

"Are you getting the signal?"
"Copy" came Derek's reply

"Way to go Mcgeek" Tony enthused "I knew those silly little toys of yours would come in handy one day"

Emily smiled at the banter between the two NCIS agents. Tony was what she deemed a peacock; showy and colorful, but a heart of gold and a man really just looking for his soul mate. She had to admit that she liked the man. Maybe a little too much, she decided as she caught Tony's just as interested look from across the table. Smiling a little she focused back on the conversation between Derek and Tim.

"Looks like a kitchen table, chair"

"Is that a laptop on the table?" Derek asked "It could be useful"

"Wait, go back" Emily suddenly said.

As the camera came back towards the door, Emily pointed to the screen. "Look at that"

Tony frowned. "He's dropped his mail there"

Derek suddenly yelled to the Swat team, "Go, go, go, go"

As they looked through the apartment their hearts sank.

"What happened?" Tim asked

"He's not coming back here" Emily told him. "He left his food untouched"

"You drop your mail like this when you're startled," Tony added "when you need to get out of dodge quick"

Emily nodded. "Something tipped him off"

Derek came out of the bedroom. "Suitcases are open, some clothes are missing. There's a safe with a stash of guns in it. He didn't even bother to lock it"

"If he's in a hurry," Reid reasoned, "he'll start making mistakes"

"Yeah" Tony sighed "but when this guy gets cornered he starts killing again"

"We're not going to let that happen" Emily told him.

Derek picked up the laptop. "We need to get Garcia onto this"

"This guy is creepy good" Garcia announced as she frantically hit buttons.

"How good?" asked Tim watching in amazement and a little admiration.

"He's wiped his hard drive. He may have been in a hurry to leave but whatever was on there he did not want us to see it.

"Gibbs says you're the best he's seen at this stuff" Tim revealed.

Garcia smiled in affection for the gruff NCIS agent. She had long been friends with Abby and knew that she held a secret love for the much older man but would never let on to it. Though Garcia, and she suspected Aaron, could see it coming from both sides.

"So tell me that you can rebuild it"

"Watch me work darling" she smiled up at him.

Tim felt a slight tug at his heart. Garcia was definitely not the kind of person one assumed would be an FBI analyst. She was open, warm, funny, had a heart of gold, and freakishly good at what she did. She was also one of the most colourful characters he had ever come across. And he liked her. Alot. And he knew the feeling was mutual. He smiled to himself. When this was over...

"Oh wow"

Tim snapped to attention. "What have you got?"

Garcia frowned as she continued to move her fingers like lighting across the keys. "He had an internet alarm on the name Peter Rhea. It alerted him as soon as we ran that check on it"

"Damn it" Tim sighed.

Rossi thanked the waitress for the topped up coffee with a gleaming smile.

As Abby finished her pancakes, topped with berries and maple syrup and a side of sliced banana, she watched Rossi eat his serving of bacon, eggs, hash browns and toast. She smiled and wondered how he could eat such a calorie loaded meal and yet still be in tip top shape.

Catching her looking at him, he paused and winked.

"I have a favor to ask" Abby said "I want you to teach me some basic moves to defend myself"

Rossi slowly put his fork down and wiped his mouth with his napkin. As he twisted his coffee cup on the table he asked "Why"

"This is me being proactive, Rossi. I want to be able to walk to the grocery store without jumping at shadows"

A thousand replies flooded Rossi's mind, all of them involving him being there as she walked to the store. But he knew that she needed her independence, needed to feel like she could do things for herself and by herself again. This was one of the things that had first attracted him to her, and because of that he would do what he needed to to ensure that she was able to have that independence again.

"Let me talk to Aaron and Derek and see what I can organize for you"

Abby smiled and graced his cheek with a kiss. "Thanks" she smiled.

A few days later Abby entered the FBI gym and met with Aaron and Derek. Rossi had opted to observe rather than get involved. He told the guys that he thought Abby would take training better from them rather than him. As he took a seat in the bleaches on the far wall he watched as Abby approached the two agents.

"Hey hot stuff" Derek joked, immediately putting her at ease.

Aaron quickly explained that he and Derek would demonstrate some basic take down moves and then she would get to try them.

As Abby watched her best friend and his senior agent go through the basics, Rossi watched her. His profiler eye could easily detect the slight tremor in her hands, even from the distance between them. He could tell that her nerves were slowly gaining traction by the way she moved her weight from foot to foot. And by the way her eyes skittered from the guys to the door, he could tell that she was warring with herself over the idea to do this. He also knew that despite all that, and the fact that her mind was no doubt screaming at her to escape, she would suck it up and do what she needed to do. As the demo came to an end, Aaron turned to Abby and smiled. "Ready?"

"Hell yeah" she whispered.

A surge of pride shot through Aaron as he watched her go through the moves with Derek. Seeing his best friend come back from the brink had been like witnessing a small miracle. In his line of work that was something to treasure. He knew that Gibbs had played a huge part not just in Abby's physical recovery but her emotional and mental recovery as well. Like Aaron, Gibbs was the center that had kept her world grounded and on solid footing. Aaron knew that he would never be able to repay Gibbs for putting the smile back on Abby's face and the spark back in her eyes. He had wondered how Rossi would feel about Abby turning to him and Gibbs for the majority of support, yet Rossi hadn't seemed annoyed. He still found it interesting that Gibbs had never revealed his true feelings to Abby. Aaron knew that Gibbs and Abby's relationship had caused many to wonder why they hadn't gotten together, or in fact if they had done so secretly. Though both had denied feelings other than friendship, Aaron had been a profiler long enough to know that Gibbs would have taken up the challenge; if Abby hadn't been halfway in love with Rossi. Gibbs had quietly backed off and as far as he was concerned no one knew what he missed out on. No one but Aaron. And maybe Rossi.

After nearly three hours of take down practice, Aaron deemed Abby had learned enough for her first day. Sweat dripped from her face. She had the start of a large bruise on her left arm where she had accidentally hit Derek in the forehead rather than the chest. But there was also a gleam in her eye that told all three men that she had done just what she needed to do.

"Good job kid" Derek gave her a pat on the shoulder as he passed her on his way to the showers. Aaron also gleamed with pride. Hugging her and kissing her cheek, he told her "We'll do more later in the week if you want" He threw Rossi a wave as he followed Derek to the showers.

"That was really good" Rossi told her as he approached her side.

"Really?" she asked.

"Really"

Abby gave a soft sigh. "Can you take me home now?"

He groaned quietly.

She had moved into the spare room in Aaron's apartment because of some old fashioned notion she had about not living with a guy that wanted to marry her. And Aaron had been unusually keen to accommodate her. Interesting considering he could have sworn he had the best friends seal of approval. Still, at least she wasn't rooming with Gibbs. That was a man that Rossi seriously had doubts about when it came to Abby.

He was feeling antsy, he decided. He and Abby had only made love once, that time in his office. Right after that encounter he had assumed she would move into his room and they would continue to enjoy each other. But no. She had decided that she had to move out in order to preserve their romance. He had been hoping that she would like to spend the night tonight. He had envisioned her having a lengthy soak in his Jacuzzi with him soaping her back, among other things. By the time he let her out of the Jacuzzi she would be wound so tight she would want nothing but to be under him for the rest of the night. Instead she was opting to go home. To Aaron's. Where he couldn't touch her.