Hey! Only a few more chapters to write! I'm so excited about completing my first FanFic! Going to seriously try to get the chapters posted more frequently from here on out! Hope you enjoy!

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Chapter 14

Ziva eluded several staff members who tried to hold her back. Someone hit a button to close the double doors on her, but she slipped through them just in time. She heard another code sound off over the intercom, she was sure it was telling employees to stop her. She didn't care though, she kept running at full speed dodging people left and right. At one point, she had to push her left side into a wall to keep a nurse from grabbing her. An excruciating pain shot through her shoulder, but she kept pushing through. She reached the waiting room and glanced in. No one was there. She rounded the corner and ducked into a stairwell. Bad choice. Although she found who she was looking for, she was not prepared for the arms that overtook her.

Within seconds of opening the door, she was being held with a gun to her neck by none other than James Godwin. She looked up and saw Tony in a similar position with a man she didn't recognize holding a gun to his head. Gibbs, McGee and three local police officers were standing with guns pointed at the two men

"You brought this on yourselves, coming here and involving your agency in our business. Could've kept your team from all this trouble if you'd simply stayed out of it." James said to Gibbs.

"The way I see it, you can either die here with three bullets to the head, or you can let my agents go and we can work out a deal. All you have to do is let us return our Marines home and you will be free of us." Gibbs responded.

"Right, a deal." James chuckled and shook his head.

James continued his monologue and Ziva waited for an opportunity to make a move. She glanced back up the stairs and made eye contact with Tony, silently telling him to follow her lead.

Tony was so relieved and overjoyed to see Ziva's face that he honestly thought he may break down and cry. He loved the way they communicated, telling the other exactly what they should do using only their eyes. He knew that, at some point in his speech, James wold slip up and talk with his hands, as criminals always did during their elaborate speeches of how they could never be played for a fool by law enforcement. This would loosen his grip on Ziva and she could free herself. This would, inevitably, cause his backup man to react which, in turn, would give Tony the opportunity to turn the gun on his captor.

The entire event took no more than a second. As soon as James loosened his arm the slightest bit from Ziva's neck, she nodded ever so slightly at Tony signaling him that his chance would come soon. She elbowed James in the gut and slid out from under his hold, grabbing his arm and leaning them both against the wall so that the gun was to his chest. The man holding Tony reacted and he too, loosed himself from the mans grip.

Gibbs ran to Ziva, cuffing James and handing him over to one of the local officers. McGee did the same to the other man.

"Tony, get Ziver back to her room." Gibbs called over his shoulder, not the least bit concerned about the bleeding head wound Tony had received while being assaulted by James and his sidekick.

"Ziva, you just got out of surgery, what were you thinking?" Tony scolded her, bringing her into a hug and kissing her nose. "You could have seriously injured yourself just now, let's get you checked out."

Tony pulled back and just stared at her.

"Tony, I was so worried, my nurse told me what the codes meant, then she couldn't find you. I just had a gut feeling something bad was happening. I had to come to you. I don't care about the pain. You know it only hurts if you let it." She said, winking at him to lighten the mood.

They started toward the double doors that lead back to Ziva's recovery room. She would have to find Cynthia and let her direct them to her real room. Just before they turned the corner, Tony stopped them and turned her towards him, taking advantage of the only privacy they would have for at least a couple more hours.

He searched her eyes and put his palm to her cheek. "I have never felt more helpless than I did today. Seeing you lying there, blood all around you. I just can't get the image out of my mind. I should've been there in front of you. I should've taken the bullet not you. I can't tell you how sorry I am that I couldn't protect you from that." A tear escaped from Tony's eye and fell down his cheek falling on Ziva's arm that was around his waist.

Ziva reached up and wiped the his cheek dry with her fingers. "Tony, there was no way you could've known. Don't be sorry for something that is out of your control. You took great care of me and kept me from loosing a lot of blood." Ziva stopped, trying to think of something comforting. "Don't think of me lying there bleeding. What happened just before I walked over to that window, Tony?"

He couldn't help but smile brightly at the thought. "I told you I was going to marry you." He said, thinking of the look on Ziva's face when she sat up so quickly in bed in response to his words. He smiled even wider than before and brought his mouth down onto hers.

They kissed hungrily and when they pulled apart, Ziva spoke. "Think of me then. In that moment. Remember how I looked. I can honestly say that was the most blissful moment of my life. What's a little wound compared to that? It will heal and will be forgotten. But I will never forget the moment that proceeded it."

Tony smiled and kissed her lips once more. "I'm being selfish. You need to get your shoulder checked. I want to be sure you didn't injure it further in your ridiculous post surgery rescue mission."

"And you dear Tony need to make sure your head doesn't need stitches." Ziva said grabbing his hand as they walked.

He rolled his eyes and led her to the double doors. She could see Cynthia standing inside them with her hands on her hips clearly cross with her. When they made eye contact, Ziva made a mental note to try and get back on Cynthia's good side. She didn't know how long she would be staying here and she would need Cynthia on her side in order for Tony to be permitted to sleep in her bed.

They walked through the doors and Ziva gave a sheepish smile as she made eye contact with her nurse.

"I declare, Darlin, you are trying to land yourself back in surgery and give me a heart attack in the meantime!" Cynthia said waving Tony aside and pulling Ziva into a room.

Cynthia made Ziva lie down on the bed to be transported to her room. She took one good look at Tony and called another nurse over who walked Tony into a room to clean and bandage his head.

Neither was happy to be separated from the other for any fraction of time. Ziva couldn't help but feel a sadness mixed with worry in the pit of her stomach. They had each been in such danger in the last twenty four hours and she didn't want to loose sight of him for even a second.

But Tony reminded himself of Ziva's words to him and he decided to remember the happiness and cling to it. To take hold of the small things in life. The moments that make it all worthwhile. He smiled again genuinely at the memory of Ziva's reaction to his words that morning and played her more recent words back in his head.

"What's a little wound compared to that?"