Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

A.N.: Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing! Especially Mrs Elizabeth Gibbs, books-n-cookies, Pandora of Ithilien and HesMines! Thank you all so much!

Ziva stared ahead at the white walls of the waiting room that Mike, Gibbs and herself had been ushered into an hour ago, the white giving her the perfect blank canvas to slip in to a daydream. It was one of the best kinds, one where she and Tony were together, where they didn't have to hide their relationship from Gibbs because he knew and approved. Where they were husband and wife and shared every aspect of their lives with each other. One in which she had a real family again. Since she had lost her little sister Tali, she had vowed to get revenge and never to lose anyone else. Her eyes filled up with tears, her mind replaying the moment she had broken that promise; the moment when she herself had shot her half brother Ari in the head. She wanted to believe she had done it to save Gibbs, and in part she had, but it was not the driving force behind her actions. Protecting someone she didn't know would never have induced her into killing her last sibling. She had needed to save Ari from himself. He had been such a loving, wonderful brother, how he had become the man she saw in Gibbs' basement, she didn't know. She had shot the monster he had become to save her brothers soul, and then came face to face with the reality of her actions when she had sat next to his body, singing to him and watching his blood spread across the dusty floor. She cringed as a flash of Tony's blood spreading on a dusty floor appeared in her mind. If he died, she had only herself to blame. She had been the one urging him to go after Jenny and Gibbs but he hadn't wanted to. She may as well have pulled the trigger herself, again. She should have known better than to get involved in Jenny and Jethro's business, they always maintained they could do things without help, well now she wished she had left them to it.

Gibbs paced past her and she winced in guilt. Tony wasn't the only one laying in theatre dying, Jenny was there too. If she and Tony had stayed away Jenny would be dead for sure, maybe Mike and Gibbs too. Was that better than the thought of losing Tony? Was she really that selfish? Jenny was her friend, her confidante; the person she went to with personal problems and quandaries, but Tony was the man she loved. She closed her eyes, her feelings too chaotic to make sense of. She didn't want anyone to die, they were her friends, a surrogate family that had taken her in despite her faults and continued to love her no matter what. She just felt so strongly about Tony. If he made it out of this, she would tell him how she felt, she didn't have anything to lose now. She looked up at the clock on the wall. An hour and a half ago they had walked into this hospital, and since then they had been checked over, bandaged and in Gibbs' case, cast in plaster, then put in here to wait for word on Tony and Jenny, and they still didn't know what was going on. She stood up and walked to the door, fully intending to give the receptionist a piece of her mind when the door opened from the other side and a man stepped in. Mike and Jethro snapped their eyes to him as he cleared his throat and there was a collective holding of breath as they waited for him to speak.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Anderson, are you family of Agent Anthony DiNozzo and Director Jennifer Shepard?" They all nodded and he continued. "The surgeries went well. Both patients needed blood transfusions and when they wake up they will be very weak. Agent DiNozzo will need to be kept in ICU for a few weeks due to where the bullet entered his body. Since the gut is a very germ filled environment, any wound down there is serious, so we will be watching him for septic shock. His leg was grazed by a bullet, and while it was deep, it didn't tear any tendons, so he should be able to walk on it alright. He will also need physiotherapy for his stomach muscles in later weeks and he will have a lot of trouble breathing, since his ribs were almost shattered in some very violent CPR. We set the ribs that had splintered back in place, but there isn't a lot we can do to make sure they heal properly. We obviously can't cast his chest, so he will be in considerable pain whenever he takes a breath."

"Thank god…" Ziva whispered, and closed her eyes in relief; he was going to be ok. He wouldn't die now, Gibbs wouldn't let him and neither will she. She opened her eyes again and listened to what the doctor was saying about Jenny.

"Director Shepard was shot in the chest, breaking a rib or two and piercing a lung, so she too will be in pain whenever she breathes. Her lung partially collapsed and then filled with blood, but we were able to drain and mend it. The bullet nicked her artery, and though it wasn't a big hole, it's still a miracle she didn't bleed out where she fell. Your loved ones are strong to have made it this far, but they are not out of the woods yet. They have been sedated and will sleep for a few hours."

"Can we see them?" Ziva asked, her voice showing an urgency that they all felt, but didn't want to show.

"Yes, they are in room 146 in the east wing." They followed him out of the room and then walked swiftly past him down the corridors until they came to room 146. Ziva paused at the door and then stepped back to allow Gibbs to go in first. She wanted to see Tony and Jenny, but she wasn't sure if she could handle it. She had been showing a lot more vulnerability then she was comfortable with lately, and she had only a meagre amount of control over herself. She didn't want to lose it again. Gibbs slipped past her, squeezing her shoulder as he did so, and she followed him in. There was a nurse in the room checking the dosages in the IV's, she smiled at them as they filed in and then she tried to make herself as unobtrusive as possible. The families of those in the worst conditions tended to be more aggressive to hospital staff, so she tried not to garner their attention. When she had finished checking the patients over, she quietly slinked out, looking one last time at the small group sympathetically. Those three had a long wait ahead of them.

Jethro walked into the room first, Ziva behind him and Mike trailing along behind. He stopped in the middle of the floor as he took in both Tony and Jenny's appearances; looking so pale they could easily have been one of the bodies that Ducky was about to work on in autopsy. They had breathing apparatus in their throats and morphine and fluids were being pumped into their bodies, the heart monitors beeping occasionally to say they were still alive. Jethro tore his eyes away from Jenny and then walked to Tony's side, checking he was ok before mentally preparing himself to see her properly. Tony didn't look good; his face was bruised from the repeated attempts of forcing air in his mouth, probably from Ziva, who reached out to touch the purple marks hesitantly, tears rolling down her cheeks. The rest of his body was covered in a hospital gown, the bed sheet pulled up to his middle, but Ziva gently pulled the top of his gown back to see the damage to his chest. She let out a sob and put her face in her hands, as dark purple and almost black bruising appeared to everyone's eyes. It had saved his life, but to Ziva it was a reminder that she hadn't been able to do anything to save him.

Mike reached around her and put Tony's gown back in place, throwing an arm around the distraught woman in the process. She needed some comfort at the moment, and even though he didn't like to be around emotional girls, he would bear it for now. He grinned to himself as he watched Jethro steel himself to turn to Jenny; if he needed a hug too he had a free arm. He chuckled to himself, knowing that if Gibbs ever did anything like that, the first thing he would do would be to whack him upside of the head rather than embrace him, and then send him for a cat scan.

Jethro took a deep breath and turned away from Tony, coming to face Jenny's bed and then he moved to her side. She looked much better than Tony, there were no bruises on her face, but unlike Ziva, Gibbs didn't feel it was right to pull down Jenny's gown to check for CPR damage. She would more than likely wake up and strangle him. He smiled; it almost seemed worth it if that could really happen. He reached out and took Jenny's hand, caressing it softly as he watched her sleep. It seemed like days ago that they had kissed, when in reality it was only about three hours, but so much had happened. He had come to LA expecting to attend the funeral of a dearly departed friend and then follow Jenny around the shops. Instead he had found out his friend was a traitor, who had slept with Jenny's target and then let her go, lying to everyone about what he had done and he then took the credit for Jenny killing his, while he blamed her for Svetlana's escape. Gibbs had believed Jenny was lying when she had told him, but he had eventually seen the truth in her eyes and trusted her.

That had led to a rather memorable encounter with her, kissing her senseless against a wall, then bringing her down on the floor of the diner, neither wanting to waste the time they had, but both unwilling to consummate their new closeness in such hostile and unfamiliar surroundings. He was glad for their hesitancy now, knowing that if they had done anything they would have been none the wiser to the attack brewing just outside the diner, but her hushed, breathy words had affected him more than he cared to admit. They had been getting particularly adventurous with their petting and she had whispered in his ear. He was certain she hadn't meant to say it and she probably didn't realise she had, but he had heard them and he knew they were from the heart. "I need your baby." It sounded ridiculous if you said it out loud in normal conversation, but she had been beneath him, running her hands over his body, his stroking hers, and the words had sounded like a magical incantation for happiness. It had felt right to hear from her and he had realised he felt the same. He needed her baby, he needed her to carry his child, he needed her to be everything to him and it was intoxicating knowing they were thinking along the same lines subconsciously as well as consciously. He kissed her hand and buried his face in her arm. He just hoped he got the chance to tell her.

Ziva pulled out of the circle of Mike's arms and walked over to Jethro, gasping at the sight of Jenny, and then placing a steadying hand on Gibbs' shoulder. Mike decided to stay by the door in a guard position. He didn't think they would be attacked, but he didn't know Tony or Jenny as well as Ziva and Jethro. He didn't want them to feel like he was faking anxiety, so he stayed out of it, only showing the concern he really felt. He didn't want them to die, they were both decent people and he liked them, particularly Jenny, whom he knew just that bit more than DiNozzo. She was sassy in a good way and he respected her intelligence, which she had surely needed to get to the top in somewhere as male dominated as NCIS. Jethro needed her too, which was another thing in her favour, just like Ziva obviously needs Tony. This family wasn't complete though, only half its members were present. The geeks and the ME were still in DC, unaware anything bad had befallen them. He didn't want to cause Jethro or Ziva more pain, but someone should let them know.

"Probie, you want me to call the rest of your team?" Jethro looked up at him and then shook his head slowly. Calling the team would give him something to do other than waiting to see if Tony and Jenny were going to make it through.

"No, no I'll do it."

"Something is wrong Timmy, I can feel it!" Abby declared, pacing in front of McGee's desk in the bullpen like a caged tiger. Every now and then she threw worried glances towards the elevator as if she expected the Angel of Death to come out of it, offering its condolences.

"Nothing's wrong Abby, calm down." She turned on the spot and advanced on him menacingly, making McGee decide that trying to make her feel better would only be painful for him.

"I will not calm down Timmy! You know that feeling you get? The one where you just know something terrible has happened?" He gave her a blank look and she waved her hands dismissively at him. "Of course you don't, but I have, and I have it!" McGee was saved from having to respond by the sudden appearance of Ducky, who wandered over to them curiously, having watched Abby's display of nervousness.

"What do you have my dear?" She turned to look at him, her gaze softening into puppy dog eyes.

"A terrible feeling that something bad has happened in LA!" Ducky smiled at her reassuringly.

"I'm sure it's nothing Ab-" his phone began to ring, cutting him off unexpectedly. "Excuse me." He said to Abby and McGee, walking over to Ziva's desk for a little privacy before accepting the call. "Dr. Mallard."

"Ducky, it's me." Gibbs' voice said, though he sounded strained, like he was troubled. Ducky decided to ignore it, he would tell him if it were anything to do with him.

"Ah Jethro! How is Los Angeles?" there was a short silence after he said that, and Ducky began to get worried.

"We're not sightseeing. Jenny and Tony were shot, we're in the hospital." Ducky stopped where he was and his eyes widened in shock.

"My god! What happened? Is everyone alright?" he couldn't believe it; Jenny and Tony had been shot. What was he going to tell Abby and Timothy if one of them didn't make it?

"They're in a bad way, Duck. They nearly bled out where they were shot and Tony stopped breathing. Jenny's lung collapsed… they both lost consciousness… had to be airlifted to hospital… I'd rather not talk about it over the phone. Could you… could you just…?" his voice almost broke, causing Ducky to take pity on him and finish what he was about to say, instead of forcing him to continue.

"Yes Jethro, I'll tell the others."

"Thanks. Oh and give this number to McGee would you? Jenny… Jenny found it; it was Decker's insurance policy." Ducky picked up a pen and grabbed some paper, scrunching up his face in concentration, trying to think about some reason William would have needed an insurance policy. He couldn't think of one but wrote down the numbers Jethro said over the phone to him anyway.

"Why would he need one of those?"

"He wasn't as honest as we thought." That one sentence carried venom that Ducky hadn't heard in a long time. Obviously Decker had done something very wrong and Jethro had only just found out about it.

"Alright I'll just…" he trailed off as he looked at the string of numbers he had written. There was something familiar about them; it was almost like he had written them before. Just like that his eyes closed and he sighed, the memory coming back and giving him something good to report back to Gibbs. "Jethro I think I can save you some trouble on this. It's a case file number." Gibbs was silent on the other end of the phone, probably wondering why his insurance policy was a case file too.

"Are you sure Duck?"

"Jethro, I have been here at NCIS for long enough to recognise something like that. I have always done my own paperwork, by hand too, so things like this stick in my mind. It is an old file number though; we haven't used this sequence for at least eight years." He said, examining the numbers for other clues. "Oh, and it won't be accessible by computer either. These files are all kept over in archives in paper form. No one has bothered to write them up on the computer system yet, if they ever will."

"Can you get the file for me Duck?"

"I suppose so, although I'm not sure if I'm allowed to take it out of the building." He heard hushed voices on Jethro's end of the line and then he spoke again.

"Mike says someone in archives owes him one. Just tell the guy his name and that they are even."

"Alright, do you want us to come to you with it?"

"No. we'll try get Jenny and Tony moved to Bethesda as soon as we can. We just need to clean up the crime scene." Ah of course. If Jenny and Tony were attacked, Ziva and Jethro would make sure no one walked away from it alive.

"I'll be awaiting the bodies."

"Thanks Duck."

"You're welcome Jethro." He ended the call and turned around to see Abby and Timothy watching him warily, something in his demeanour telling them something really was wrong. He walked towards them slowly, gathering the words to tell them what had happened, without scaring them too much.

"What is it?" Timothy asked, and Ducky sighed softly, deciding he couldn't put it off any longer.

"Jenny and Tony were shot; they are in hospital in LA." Abby's stricken face felt like a punch in the gut, and he had to remind himself that they aren't dead. "They aren't dead Abby, just wounded." McGee stared off into the distance, shock not really making it real for him. He distractedly put an arm around Abby's shoulders and she buried her face in his chest, crying quietly. Everyone knew that getting shot is bad, but when you understand the human body like she did, you knew that a bullet wound anywhere could kill, even if it was through shock alone, because the bullet just rips its way through the body. She clamped her eyes shut harder, trying to erase the images of bullets tearing through Jenny and Tony, their lifeless bodies falling to the ground.

"They'll be fine Abs, they're fighters." McGee said to her softly, and she brought her head up to look at him.

"What if they don't have anything to fight for?"

"They do." He smiled knowingly at her and she allowed herself to smile back. Ziva and Gibbs were with them. They would know. They would fight.

A.N. 2: It just stood to reason for me that Ducky would recognise the numbers, since he has been part of NCIS for so many years. Mike figured it out in the episode, so why wouldn't Ducky, who hand writes everything?