Don and Bill were at the airstrip, waiting for them to land. The detective found that his hands were shaking, and nothing he did could make them stop. Bill had made him try to get some sleep the night before, since there wasn't anything more they could do until the agents arrived back in Los Angeles. But as soon as he laid down and closed his eyes, his mind echoed with the sound of gunfire and his partner once again in danger. It didn't matter that they hadn't been able to hear the gun battle. Chloe had called them and explained the situation to them, and that was enough to send his thoughts racing, imaging every different way it could have gone.

As the plane touched down, he let out a breath that he didn't even know he'd been holding. Stealing a glance at Bill, he tried once again to steady his nerves.

"It doesn't get any easier," the older man said gently.

Flack crossed his arms, his eyes once again locked on the plane. "I'm hopin' this is her last crazy overseas mission."

Bill turned and looked at the younger man beside him, measuring him up and down. "I hope so, too," he said quietly.

************************

The relief she felt at seeing Flack standing there sent shockwaves through her. Being in China had brought her back to a world she thought she had left far behind; when she saw his face, his blue eyes searching her face desperately, it felt as though he were the anchor holding her to the life she had begun to build for herself in New York. It took everything she had not to run up to him and wrap her arms around him.

"Hey you," she said instead, a tired smile on her face.

"Hey. Glad you made it back, Connelly," he replied, his voice tight.

"Told you I would."

She turned to Bill, but he was already there, hugging her tightly. Closing her eyes, she returned the embrace, ignoring the way her body groaned in protest.

"You gave us quite a scare, Ava."

"You should be used to that by now with her."

Bill smiled at Jack, stepping forward and shaking his hand. "It's good to see you, Jack."

"It's good to be back. Thank you, Bill. For everything."

The director nodded. "No more getting kidnapped, okay?"

"Deal."

"Good. Let's get everyone back to my place. You can get cleaned up there." He turned his attention to the unconscious man that Curtis had dragged out of the plane. "Curtis? Bring him to C.T.U., please, and put him in a holding cell with a heavy guard."

"Yes sir."

The agent didn't even pick the pilot up. He simply grabbed the back of his collar and dragged him across the air strip toward a waiting vehicle.

"I'm kinda surprised you brought him back alive," Flack murmured.

Bill watched the traitor with cold eyes. "Soon, he'll wish they hadn't."

*************************

Ava lowered herself on to the bed in Bill's guest room, hissing in pain. They hadn't yet removed the nails from her body, wanting to get some place where they had antiseptic and proper medical care if it was needed. She was fairly certain that no major organs had been pierced, and now she just wanted to get them out of her, and then pop a couple pain pills and get some sleep.

There was a quiet knock on the door, and she looked up to see Flack slipping into the room. For a minute he just stood there, staring at her, almost drinking her in with his eyes. Then he was moving forward and kneeling in front of her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

He held up his hand, and it was then that she saw the medical kit. "Let's patch you up," he said quietly.

Ava shook her head. "I can –"

"No," Don said firmly. "You've done enough by yourself, Ava. You're not alone, so don't act like it." He reached out and rested his hand on top of hers. "Let me help you."

She was too tired to argue with him, and the warmth from his hand spread across her skin and up her arm. "Okay," she whispered.

"Okay." He paused, swallowing hard. "Can you lift up your shirt, show me where they are?

Ava gave him a small smile and shook her head. "The nails are holding my shirt there. You'll have to pull 'em out first."

He winced slightly and then nodded. "Okay." Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a pair of pliers. "This is gonna hurt, Ava," he murmured.

"I know." She looked around. "Would it be easier if I were lying down?"

"Probably."

Ava nodded and scooted further onto the bed, maneuvering herself until she was lying on her stomach. For a moment Flack just watched her. Then he knelt on the bed beside her and took a deep breath.

"Try not to get too frisky, Flack," she quipped, her voice muffled by the pillow.

He chuckled at that, expelling some of the tension building up in his chest. "I'll do my best, Connelly."

Don reached out then, letting his fingers drift over her back. Her muscles tensed beneath his touch, and when he found the first nail, her breath hitched painfully. Closing his eyes briefly, Don took one more deep breath and then took hold of the nail head with the pliers.

It was a painful process for both of them. Ava gasped and cried out as he pulled the nails out of her body, and every sound she made caused Flack to cringe. He dropped each bloody nail into the garbage can, amazed at the strength of his partner.

When he thought he had all of the nails out, he set the pliers aside and once again ran is fingers over her back and legs. Her muscles didn't tense this time, and he was thorough in making sure that there was nothing left piercing her skin.

"Okay," he said, his voice sounding loud in his ears. "You can sit up now."

She moved slowly, breathing deeply as she moved back to the edge of the bed. For a moment the two of them just sat there; Flack watched her carefully, watching as she steadied herself.

"We still need to clean the wounds," he said finally.

Ava nodded. "Yeah."

He moved his gaze to the floor, his ears turning slightly pink. "It'll be easiest if you take your shirt off."

She rolled her eyes and smirked at him. "I had a feeling you were gonna say that. Turn your head."

"Yes, ma'am."

He did as she asked, and Ava slowly removed her shirt and bra, the movements reminding her that she was going to need some rest before she was back at one hundred percent. She used her shirt to completely cover her front and then she shifted to the side so that her bare back was facing her partner.

"Okay," she said quietly.

When Flack turned back around, he stared at the angry red holes in her back. Most of them were bleeding, and his chest was tight as he reached into the medical kit and pulled out the antiseptic and gauze. Trying to ignore how soft her skin was beneath his hands, he focused on cleaning her up.

Ten minutes later, he had every wound bandaged, except for the two on the back of her right thigh. She had given him a stern look over her shoulder, telling him in no uncertain terms that she was not taking off her pants in front of him. He smiled and nodded, packing up the medical kit while she put her shirt back on.

"Thank you, Don," she said quietly.

He sat beside her again. "I should be thankin' you." When she gave him a strange look, he shrugged, looking down at the ground again. "For not dyin' over there."

She watched him closely and reached out, taking his hand in hers. "You were really worried, weren't you?"

Flack nodded, still not meeting her eyes. "Yeah, I was. I don't like you doin' stuff like that, Connelly."

"Well, I don't plan on doing anything like that again. If that makes you feel any better."

He looked up then, his blue eyes meeting hers, and sending a small shiver down her spine. "It does."

*****************************

She found him standing on the balcony, staring at the setting sun. He had shaved and cut his hair, and he almost looked like the man she knew so well. But there were scars that hadn't been there before, and a haunted look in his eyes that made her blood run cold. She stepped up beside him, letting her shoulder rub against his.

"Hey, Jack," she said quietly.

He gave her a small smile. "Hi, Ava."

"How does it feel to be home?"

"I'm not so sure this is home anymore." He took a deep breath. "But it feels good. To wear real clothes, to take a hot shower, to have a normal conversation…I was afraid you'd never come," he added quietly.

Her eyes filled with tears. "I'm sorry it took us so long."

"It only matters that you came." He was silent for a moment. "Bill got the information he needed out of the pilot."

"Oh?"

"He's been a plant from the beginning. A mercenary hired by a private company, and then the Chinese hired that company. They hid their tracks well."

"They had to, to get past Chloe. Do we know the name of the company?"

Jack shook his head. "That's all he would say. Bill's got someone working on him, but he doesn't have high hopes for getting anything else." He leaned his arms on the railing. "So, you're living in New York now."

"Yeah. Needed a change of scenery."

"I can understand that. Cold there, though."

Ava frowned. "Yeah, it is."

There was a small pause. "Your partner seems like a good guy."

She smiled. "He is. A pain in my ass, sometimes, but yeah. Don is a good man."

"He cares about you."

"He's become a good friend."

"I think it's more than that."

"You don't even know him, Jack."

"I know what a man looks like when he's in –"

"Stop. Don't you dare say it."

"Ava…"

"Leave it, Jack."

"You feel the same way about him."

"I do not."

He sighed. "You're going to insist on being difficult about this, aren't you?"

"I'm a difficult woman." She decided to change the subject. "So are you gonna stay in L.A.?"

Jack shook his head. "Chloe told me that Kim moved to Boston."

"Yeah, a couple months ago. I think she'll be happy to see you."

"I hope so."

Ava leaned her head on his shoulder. "I think we're gonna be okay, Jack."

He wrapped an arm around her and kissed the side of her head. "I hope so."

********************************

"You ready to go?" Curtis asked as he stepped into the room Ava was using.

She nodded. "Yeah. We still have time to do this before we catch our flight?"

"Yeah."

The drive out to the cemetery was silent, the windows open as they both breathed in the warm L.A. air. Curtis dropped her off and then moved slowly down one of the lanes, his own destination a short distance away. Ava watched him until he stopped the car and got out, and then turned to face the headstone in front of her.

"Hey, Tony," she whispered, tears already falling down her face. She lowered herself to the grass, hugging her knees tightly to her chest. "I'm sorry it's been so long since I've visited." She paused, wiping at her face. "I miss you," she whispered. "But it's getting a little easier. I've made new friends, and I've started a new life…New York is really nice. I think you'd like it." Another pause. "We got Jack back a couple days ago. Having him back…it took a lot of the pain away." She shook her head. "He thinks I have a thing for my partner. I wish I could say that I don't, but…I'm really not sure. I just don't wanna screw something up, you know? You'd like him, though. He's a good man. And he takes good care of me."

She was silent for a long time after that. There was a lot more going on in her head, but talking hurt, and it seemed to exhaust her as well. Instead, she just lowered her head and closed her eyes.

Eventually there was a sound behind her, and she turned to see Curtis standing behind her. He was keeping his distance, and giving her some privacy, but she reached her hand up to him, and he helped her to her feet.

"Are you done?" she asked quietly.

He nodded, and she could still see the tear stains on his face. "I didn't have as much to say as I thought I would."

"Nice to sit with her though, wasn't it?"

"Yeah. For just a minute, it didn't seem to hurt so much." He looked around. "Doesn't make sense, if you think about where we are."

Ava shrugged. "I don't think grief makes sense." She stepped forward, brushing her fingers across the headstone. "Bye, Tony." Looking back up at her friend, she took his hand.

"You ready?" he asked.

She nodded. "Let's get Flack and go home."