Double Take
Disclaimer: NCISLA characters belong to Shane Brennan. All original characters and this story are mine.
Chapter 25
Nell had been relieved when she heard Jackson's words that Callen was safe. Her phone vibrated and saw it was an incoming call from Callen.
"Hey, babe."
She fought back the tears that threatened to spill. "Hey. So glad you're okay."
"I'm sorry to put you through the worry, Nell. We didn't expect for me to be recognised by any of Jankovics' people as Kevin's brother." He paused for a moment before he broached the subject of the Comescus. "Thanks for changing Kevin's DNA profile so it wouldn't match mine. But I was surprised about the match with the—-"
"I didn't, G," she interrupted him.
"You didn't?" Shock rippled through his body. "But, I don't understand?"
"Neither do we. Hetty's been extremely quiet about it all, she left Ops when we all looked at her for an explanation. She looked really upset, I've never seen her like that, G. Charlie has no idea either."
"She knows, Nell. She has to. If she knows, maybe my father knows too." Callen looked over at John and noticed him watching him talk on the phone. "He's been awfully quiet since they got me out of there. Something is going on, Nell."
"I know. Be careful, G. Taking Vasil down was too easy."
"My thoughts exactly, Nell. This op should take us more than a month, but we've taken down one operation of the Jankovic's in a matter of hours. I get the feeling there is a lot more to this case than Kevin's let onto us. They knew who he really was. And that he was CIA."
"Please be careful, G. All of you."
"Go home, Nell. I don't want you watching anymore. Please." He pleaded to her. "For your sake and our baby's. I need you to do this for me, so I can concentrate on the mission, and not have to worry about you."
Tears fell down her face. "It's I who should be worried about you, G, not you worrying about us."
Eric looked over at Nell and saw her crying. He knew she was talking to Callen, and he was concerned what this mission was doing to her and the baby.
"I love you, Nell. Both of you. Please, go home. Go home to your family, so you're not alone."
"I can't, G. I need to know you're okay." He could hear her cry on the other side of the phone. "I love you."
"Nell. Please."
"I will make sure she does, George." Hetty had entered Ops and picked up the conversation Nell was having with him. Nell jumped at Hetty's words and looked defiant at her boss for a moment, before looking down at her lap as she caved in. She knew it was a lost battle when it came to Henrietta Lange.
"I will ring you again soon. I promise," Callen told her.
"I'll hold you to it, G." She hung up her phone and looked at her boss. She noticed that Hetty had something on her mind and wondered if she should ask her. "Hetty?"
"Miss Jones, I agree with George, you should go home to your family while this operation is going on. It's not good for you in your condition to go through this kind of stress. Here is your plane ticket home to your family."
Nell's hand shook as she took the plane ticket off her boss. "Thanks, Hetty. But I wasn't going say anything about this—-it's about what Vasil Jankovic said. About G being familia with the Comescus." She heaved a sigh as she managed to get out what she tried to speak to Hetty about. She noticed all the colour drained from Hetty's face at the mention of Callen and the Comescus.
"Miss Jones, please, not now," she whispered. Hetty knew she needed to speak to Charlie and George first before anyone else. She quickly regained control of her emotions. "I need you to do me a favour first before you fly home though."
Nell looked up at her petite boss surprised that she had asked her for a favour. "Anything, Hetty."
"It involves Miss Blye. She will come to you soon to ask for you to go with her somewhere. I need you to go with her."
"Okay." She was puzzled at what Hetty was implying as she watched her leave Ops.
Eric tried to pretend he hadn't heard any of the conversation as he busied on his laptop. He too was puzzled at Hetty's request.
Kensi knew something was going on. She had watched Granger and Charlie leave the mission an hour earlier along with some other field agents who had been temporarily assigned to their team with Callen, Sam and Deeks being away in Prague, and her being on desk duty. But she realised whatever was going on, she was being left out of the loop. She would have gone into the gym and punched the sand bag if she wasn't pregnant. She thought about going for a run on the treadmill or a ride on one of the bikes in the gym, before her phone rang.
"Miss Blye, would you please join me for a cup of tea."
Kensi looked over at Hetty's desk and saw her boss sitting with a teapot and two cups, waiting for her. She hung up the phone and walked over to her. She didn't feel like tea, she needed to get her frustrations out of her system, but when Hetty invited you to join her for tea, you knew it was an order not a request.
"Glad you could join me, Miss Blye."
Quietly Kensi sat down opposite her boss, as she watched her pour tea into the cups.
"I need to explain why you have been left out of the loop on the case Granger, Charlie and the others have gone out on."
Kensi sat and sipped her tea as she waited for Hetty to go on. She remained silent, as she knew it was best when it involved Hetty.
"We have a dead marine who was kicked badly to death last night. Our suspect is a former marine who was discharged nine years ago due to PSD."
Kensi tensed at the time frame Hetty told her. Somewhere in the pit of her stomach she knew where Hetty was heading. "No, Hetty. It can't be him."
"Miss Blye, we have witnesses to our dead marine and Jack have a falling out a week ago."
"He wouldn't kill or hurt anyone unless his own life was threatened."
"I know you want to think the best of Jack, Miss Blye, I understand. But you haven't seen him in eight and a half years. A person can change a lot in that time, especially someone like him who suffers from PSD." Hetty gently placed her hand on Kensi's. "I'm sorry but we have to interrogate him."
"He's in the boat shed?" She stood to leave.
"Miss Blye, you cannot go over there. That's an order."
Tears welled in Kensi's eyes. Damn these pregnancy hormones, she told herself.
"Hetty!" She pleaded with her.
"Please sit back down, Miss Blye. I didn't need to tell you about Jack, I've done it out of courtesy to you, as you are family."
Kensi obeyed and sat back down. She continued to sip her tea and held the cup in her hands for the warmth of the tea, to warm her hands.
"I've been in contact with the couple who adopted your baby. She's nearly eight now."
Kensi looked up at her boss. "You had no right, Hetty. You promised you wouldn't bring this subject up again after you found her a family."
"Under the current circumstances of your condition I thought by contacting them it might give you options of what to do with this baby. They would love to adopt this one as well, Miss Blye. They are a lovely couple who adore Piper. They would love this one just as much."
Kensi crumbled and cried. She hugged herself as she thought back to her beautiful little girl she gave birth to nearly eight years ago.
"She looks like you, Miss Blye. She has the most beautiful long dark eyelashes you have ever seen. She's a great long distance runner and way ahead for her years in swimming."
"Please Hetty, don't." She couldn't deal with hearing about the girl she gave up. "I can't."
"They'll be down at the Los Angeles Swim Academy on McCadden Place in Hollywood in half an hour for Piper's swimming lesson. They would love to meet you. Piper would love to meet you too."
Kensi shook her head. "No, please don't make me go."
Hetty stood and walked around to stand beside her. She placed her hands on her shoulders for comfort. "Take Miss Jones with you. You will find that sharing this with a friend will help you get through this."
"Take Nell? But I haven't told any of them about Piper."
"Did you tell Kevin?" Hetty wanted to know if Piper was safe from her wayward nephew.
"No, I didn't," she replied.
"Good. Then she will be safe, and so will this baby, if you do decide to let Mr and Mrs Wilkins adopt him or her as well."
"You think this is a good idea don't you, Hetty?" she questioned her.
"That I do, Miss Blye. Here is the address for the pool they are at."
"Thanks, Hetty." She stood and walked up to Ops to find Nell. As she walked thought the sliding doors she saw Nell packing up her things and then she saw Jack in the interrogation room being questioned by Charlie and Granger on the screen. Eight and a half years had changed Jack a lot. His hair had grown and she suddenly realised just how much like Deeks he now looked. She shivered at the thought that she had deliberately pushed Deeks away because he had reminded her so much of Jack. But she was only kidding herself as she knew she had, and Deeks had done nothing to deserve her cold shoulder over the past couple of years, since they had become partners.
Eric and Nell looked at Kensi as she stared at the screen. "Are you okay, Kensi?" Nell asked her.
She broke her stare on the screen and looked at her friend. "Nell, I was wondering if you could please go somewhere with me?" She turned and fixed her stare on the screen again, watching and listening to Charlie and Granger question Jack.
"Yeah, sure, Kensi."
Kensi hardly heard Nell's answer as she listened to what was going on in the boat shed.
Boat Shed
"No, I didn't kill him. Yeah, I was peeved at him, but I didn't kill him. He was an old mate of mine. We went over to Filuja together, Mitch even saved my life. Why would I want to kill him?" Jack Simon sat back in his chair and looked up at the cameras. Little did he know Kensi was watching him through it.
"What did you two fight over last week then?" Charlie asked him.
"I was trying to find my old fiancé, okay?"
As he answered, Kensi froze.
"He wouldn't tell me where she had moved to. So I was peeved at him for that reason only. Is that something you would kill over?"
"No, it isn't, but you were medically discharged nine years ago for PSD." Owen Granger piped in.
"So I'm instantly guilty because I suffered hell from fighting for our country? Is that how you see me?" He glared at Granger, unimpressed with him. "I sought treatment and have recovered from the PSD. You can ask my shrink if you need to have it confirmed for you."
Kensi smiled at his rashness as he spoke to Granger. Callen would like Jack, Kensi thought.
"What's the name of your old fiancé, so we can confirm your story?" Charlie asked him. Kensi became tense and felt a hand on her arm. She turned and saw Nell with concern in her eyes.
"Kensi Blye." Eric swung his head around and looked at Kensi. He saw how tense she was and how Nell was trying to calm her down.
Jack saw Granger and Charlie both look at each other. "You know her don't you?" He wasn't stupid. And suddenly he realised that these two NCIS agents interrogating him could get him to Kensi after all. "I want to see her. Please."
"Why?" Granger asked him. "Why now after all these years?"
"Oh so you know who I am, hey?" Charlie looked over at Granger surprised he knew about Jack and Kensi.
"I know about you, Jack, only because her father was an old friend of mine, and he asked me to look out for her if anything ever happened to him."
Jack smiled. "Well looks like I am in the right company then. Can you call her, I want to see her, please."
"What if she doesn't want to see you? You did leave her on Christmas morning."
"How does Granger know that?" Kensi asked. "I sure as hell never told him." Suddenly she feared just how much Granger knew about her life. He may have been an old friend of her fathers, but she didn't like him that much.
"Let's get out of here, Kensi, while we can, okay?" Nell asked her.
Kensi nodded. She needed some air.
Kensi saw Charlie's name appear on her phone when it rang. She chose to ignore it. She felt bad because Charlie was her friend, but she couldn't deal with Jack at the moment, she had another issue to deal with—-seeing her daughter for the first time since she gave her up for adoption.
"Are you not going to answer that?" Nell asked.
"No, I'm not. I have something I need to do before I deal with Jack." Kensi suddenly felt relieved that Deeks, Callen and Sam were overseas, as they would have been the ones interrogating Jack, had they been home.
The drive to the swimming pool was held in silence, as Kensi pondered how she was going to tell Nell about Piper, and about Hetty's suggestion of placing Kevin's baby up for adoption with the same couple. She parked but she made no moves to exit the car. Kensi took a deep breath before she began. "Nell."
"Yes?" Nell responded. She was curious as to why they were outside a swimming pool in Hollywood.
"The day Jack left me I was going to tell him I was pregnant." She turned to face her petite friend as she continued. She saw Nell's shock at the news. "I never got to tell him about Piper."
"You have a daughter?" Nell was surprised at this news.
"Yes. I've never seen her since she was born. She was tiny and perfect. It broke my heart that I couldn't keep her, but I was young and alone. Hetty found a family to adopt her. Brett and Nicole Wilkins. Piper is nearly eight, and she's here having her swimming lessons."
"Wow, Kensi, this is huge news." She placed her hand on Kensi's arm for comfort. "So I gather no one other than Hetty knows about Piper, then? Well, except now you've told me of course."
"No. I didn't even tell Kevin, which I am glad I didn't. This way I can keep her and this baby safe from him."
"What are you saying, Kensi?" Nell was confused by what her friend was saying.
"Hetty said they would love to adopt another child. She asked if I would meet them, to give me options for this baby. I can't keep this baby, Nell. Not after what Kevin's done to me. I thought he loved me, but it was just a game to him to get to Callen."
"So you're seriously thinking of giving this baby to them too?"
"Yes. It makes sense, they love Piper, they can love is baby too. There's no way I could love this baby, not like it deserves. It's not its fault it's dad is an asshole." She trembled as her emotions took over. She was nervous about meeting the Wilkins, her daughter Piper and seeing Jack again. And her pregnancy hormones weren't being kind to her either. It took her years to build up her walls to protect her heart from being hurt again, only to find them crashing down when she met Kevin.
"Hey, Kensi, it's okay. You've been through hell recently and now you're faced with seeing Jack again and your daughter. I am here for you all the way, whatever you decide, okay?"
"Thanks, Nell, you're the best." She hugged Nell before they exited the car to find the Wilkins.
Kensi had no idea what the Wilkins looked like, she and Nell sat in the stands and watched girls a group of girls pace up and down the fifty metre pool, doing freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly. One of the girls smiled and waved to a couple near Kensi and Nell. She looked too tiny to be able to swim that distance and keep up with the other girls. Kensi remembered Hetty's words to her about how advanced Piper was for her age in swimming. Piper, she thought to herself. My beautiful baby girl. She turned and looked at the couple who the girl waved to.
They turned and saw her and smiled. They stood and walked over to them. "Kensi Blye?" the woman asked.
Kensi stood and greeted them. "Yes, hi, you must be Nicole and Brett Wilkins." She shook their hands.
"Miss Lange said you might drop by. It's so nice of you to come today, Piper will be thrilled to meet you. You look so much alike. Is it alright if we sit together?"
"Of course, please." Kensi sat back down next to Nell. "This is my friend, Nell."
"Hello, Nell, glad you could come with Kensi." Nicole greeted her. "We realise this was a big ask of you to come here today. Thank you." Nicole said to Kensi. "Piper is an inquisitive child, she has this amazing imagination, where she writes wonderful stories with detailed drawings alongside her stories and reads a lot. She writes a lot about you, Kensi."
"She does?" Kensi was surprised, as she thought Piper wouldn't care about her, seeing she gave her up for adoption.
"We've always been open and honest with Piper about how hard it was for you to care for her, so you gave her to us as a gift. And she truly has been a blessing, Kensi. She has this big heart and is a very happy and thoughtful girl."
Tears streamed down Kensi's cheeks. She choked back her tears as she tried hard to rein in her emotions.
"I'm sorry, Kensi, we didn't intend on making you cry."
Kensi was blown away by Nicole's kindness when she placed her arm over Kensi's shoulder to comfort her. Nicole's motherly instincts had kicked in and consoled Kensi like she would Piper.
"No, it's just these pregnancy hormones have me crying at anything and everything of late," Kensi replied.
"Miss Lange told us about what happened to your baby's father, how he was killed a few weeks ago. We are truly sorry for your loss. If there is anything we can do for you, please don't hesitate to ask."
Kensi nodded. "Thanks. Hetty mentioned that she told you I was pregnant, and that you would be interested to adopt again?"
"Yes, we are, but there is no pressure. You have already given us the best gift in the world. A second would be amazing, but we don't want you to feel like you have to or anything. It's just so you know you have that option, okay?"
"Thanks." Kensi was amazed at this couple. She could see why Hetty had suggested them in the first place, when it came to decide what to do with Piper. And now she could see Hetty was right again. She relaxed a bit and calmed down before she saw the girl run over to Nicole and Brett.
"Did you see me swim like a mermaid, Daddy?" She was sopping wet and had taken her swimming cap and goggles off. Kensi caught her breath as she saw a mini her wrap a towel around her skinny body.
"Yes we did, princess." Brett rubbed Piper dry using the towel, as she was shivering now she had stopped swimming.
Kensi watched Brett hug her and felt a twinge of jealousy that she and Jack never got to have the opportunity to be a family with Piper, and any other children they may have had, if things had been different.
Piper was rambling on about her swimming lesson, but suddenly stopped when she noticed Kensi and Nell sitting with them. It was Kensi that she had her eyes fixed on.
Kensi made eye contact and smiled. "Hi. I'm Kensi. You're a really good swimmer, Piper."
"Hi," Piper replied. She turned and whispered into Brett's ear. Kensi could see Brett nod his head. A huge grin came across her face. Next thing Kensi felt the girl fling her arms around her. Kensi responded by hugging her back. The girl was infectious with her ability to love. Kensi smiled at her daughter and found all she could feel was love for her. "You came. I'm so happy you came."
"Me too," Kensi replied.
"So are you coming back to our house?" Piper asked her.
"If you want me too," Kensi told her.
"Can she?" Piper asked her parents.
"Of course she can," Nicole told her. "So can her friend, Nell."
Piper looked over at Nell. "Sorry, I wasn't meaning to be rude. I was just so excited to see Kensi at last. Hi, I'm Piper."
"Hi Piper, I'm Nell, Kensi's friend." Nell was really impressed with Kensi's daughter. She felt for her friend, knowing how hard this was for her, but she noticed how loveable Piper was, and how lovely the Wilkins family were. Hetty was always right. That was something they all understood.
"I just need to go and get changed, I'll be right out." They watched Piper grab a bag and run off to the change rooms.
"Well, Kensi, what do you think of your daughter?"
"Wow, Nicole, she's amazing. You and Brett have done a fantastic job raising her. Far better than I ever could. Definitely not on my own, that's for sure." Tears threatened to spill down her cheeks again.
"She is an amazing girl. We have you to thank for being blessed to have her. I'm sorry, we've made you cry again." Nicole felt for the dark haired woman who sat beside her. In both pregnancies, she'd lost the father one way or the other.
"It's those damn hormones," Kensi replied. "I'm not normally like this."
"We understand. It's a lot to go through at such a young age."
Piper appeared and they followed the Wilkins in their own car to their house. Piper had been so excited to show Kensi and Nell all her stories and drawings she had done, her medals for swimming and long distance running and she even played some tunes on the piano and guitar. She had so much energy, and had a beautiful singing voice. But most of all, Kensi could see how happy Piper really was. She chatted about her friends, showing her photos of them in her photo album, and told her all about her teachers at school. "Are you going to give me a baby brother or sister?" Piper asked Kensi out of the blue.
"Piper, how did you know—-never mind." Nicole turned and looked at Kensi. "I'm sorry, we had no idea she heard us talking about your baby. We should have known better, her hearing is sharp."
"That's okay, Nicole." Kensi turned to Piper. "Would you like a baby brother or sister, Piper?"
A huge grin spread across her face. "Oh yes, I really do," she replied. "More for Mom and Dad though, they have so much love to give and they only have me to give it to."
Nicole and Brett were thrown off balance by Piper's remark. They had no idea Piper thought that way. She really was beyond her years sometimes in her understanding. "Piper dear, we had no idea you had thought that. Having you is enough for us if that is all we are given. We cannot expect Kensi or anyone else to be so generous to give us another child. We love you so much because you are an amazing girl."
"I know, Mom, it's just it would be nice to share you with someone else."
Tears welled in Nicole's eyes this time. She was so touched by Piper's kind thoughts.
Nell felt like she was intruding, but understood that Kensi needed her there for support. Kensi's daughter was an amazing girl.
"It's okay, Piper, I understand. It was only me with my mom and dad. I wished I had a brother or sister too. I'm thinking about it, though, about giving you a brother or sister. I'm just only getting used to being pregnant at the moment, so much has happened in my life recently and now..." She stopped herself, unsure whether to tell them that her father wants to see her. He didn't even know Piper existed.
Nicole looked over at Kensi and could see something was on her mind. She wasn't sure whether to ask, or just leave it be. But before she could say anything, Piper spoke again.
"Do you know where my real Dad is?" All four of the adults were surprised by her question. Brett and Nicole felt awkward, but children are so unaware how asking a question like that would affect others.
"I didn't, until today. I haven't seen him in eight and a half years. I never got a chance to tell him about you." Kensi decided to tell Piper about Jack.
"What's his name?" Piper had been curious to know about her real dad, as her parents only knew a little about her real mom.
"Jack. Jack Simon," Kensi told her.
"What was he like?" Nicole was right when she described Piper as an inquisitive child.
"He has dark hair, it was short when I knew him, but since he's left the marines, he's let it grow longer and now it's shaggy. A lot like my partner, who I work with in fact."
"Your partner? Is he the dad of your baby?"
Kensi was not used to questions from a child, but she was glad Piper had the courage to ask her those questions. It helped her tell her things.
"No. He's a Detective for LAPD. His name is Marty Deeks. But your dad, Jack, was a marine, a solider. But he saw lots of bad things that upset his mind and when he came home he was sick. It's taken him a long time to get better. But it seems he's better now, and wants to see me again. But before he got sick, Jack was a lot of fun, he has green eyes that would sparkle when he was having fun, and loved to run. He was a champion runner at school. You get your singing voice from him too. He would play songs on his guitar and sing, but I'm a terrible singer."
"Can I meet him too?"
Nicole looked at Kensi unsure if that was a good idea at the moment. "How about we give Kensi a chance to see Jack again and tell him about you first. Then Kensi can let us know if you can meet him, okay?" Nicole told Piper.
"That sounds like a good idea," Kensi added. "It's been really great meeting you today Piper, but Nell has to go home and pack as she is flying to visit her family in Columbus, Ohio. So we have to leave now." She worried how Piper would take the news that she had to leave.
"You will come back to visit soon, won't you?" She could see uncertainty in Piper's eyes.
"I will, I promise, Piper." The smile returned on Piper face. She moved to hug Kensi and Nell. "Have fun seeing your family, Nell."
"Thanks, Piper. I hope so too. It's been too long since I saw them."
"Bye, Kensi. Thanks so much for coming today."
"Bye, Piper. It was my pleasure coming to see you today." She turned to Brett and Nicole. "Thank you for letting me come today. It's meant a lot to see Piper after all these years."
"You're welcome, Kensi. Here's our home phone and mobile numbers. Call us when you are ready to visit again."
"Thanks." She and Nell left and suddenly Kensi felt so much better than she had in the past two weeks.
"You look happier, Kensi. Piper is a fantastic girl. You must be so proud of her."
"I am. And the Wilkins, they are great parents. Hetty chose well."
"You are seriously thinking of giving them this baby too, aren't you?" Nell already knew the answer before she even spoke it. She could see it in Kensi's eyes.
"Yes, Nell, I am. I can trust you though to keep this between us, and not say anything to Callen or Eric, and especially not to Deeks. He's all hung up on playing dad to this baby. But I can't do it. No matter how great Deeks is with kids, I can't play happy families with him with Kevin's kid."
"It's okay, Kensi, I get it. They are a wonderful family, and at least you know they have done a great job with Piper, so you know they will love this baby just the same."
"Yes. Hetty is right, once again."
"Hetty is always right," Nell added.
Kensi switched her cell on again and saw she had ten missed calls from Charlie and Granger. She sighed. "Time to face the music."
"Are you going to be okay seeing Jack again?"
"I hope so. These hormones have made me a blubbering mess of late, but he seems so much better than he did the last time I saw him."
"Are you going to tell him about Piper?" Nell was curious to know.
"I'll see. Test the waters about how things go seeing Jack again. If he is well like he says he is, then I might." She still wasn't certain, but Piper seemed eager to meet him.
Kensi pulled up outside Nell's apartment. She walked Nell to the door. "Do you need a ride to the airport?"
"I'll catch a cab. Thanks for offer though, but you need to see Jack now."
"Thanks, Nell. You are a great friend." Kensi hugged her petite friend and said their goodbyes.
Boat Shed
Kensi hopped back into her car and drove straight to the boat shed. Her fingers tightened around the steering wheel as she approached her destination. Meeting Piper had somehow given her the strength she needed to see Jack. She was after all their child. She climbed out of her SUV and walked through the car park to the boat shed. She could hear talking as she entered the shed. Everyone stopped as they saw her enter. They all had eyes on her, knowing why she was there. "Is he still in interrogation?" she asked Charlie.
Charlie nodded. "Yes he is. I'm sorry, Kensi, we had no idea he had been your fiancé. Hetty said not to include you on this op, but she never said why."
"That's okay. I saw some of it from Ops." She felt everyone's eyes were still on her, but she ignored them as she entered the interrogation room. She stopped a moment as she closed the door, before turning around to face Jack. His face lit up when she entered the room and stood to hug her, but Kensi stood back from him, showing him she was not ready for a hug, just yet. Eight and a half years had been a very long time, in which she had suffered heartache and tried her hardest to build walls around her heart as a result of what he had done to her.
"Kensi, my goodness, you're so beautiful," he told her.
She felt far from beautiful since what Kevin had done to her. "Jack, it's been a long time. You look well." Kensi stood on the chair to disconnect the camera feed in the room and then bent down to turn the microphone off as well.
As he watched her, Jack realised she knew what she was doing, and concluded she was an NCIS agent. "You work for NCIS?" se finally asked her.
She sat opposite Jack before she answered. "Yes, I do."
"Wow, Kens, you've done well for yourself. I've missed you, babe." He moved his hand over Kensi's, but she pulled away.
It was hard on Kensi. Part of her wanted to hug him and never let him go. The other part of her wanted to punch him hard and yell at him. But she did neither. She sat trying hard to remain calm. She remained silent for a few minutes before she had the strength to speak again. "You said you've gotten over your PSD, I'm happy for you, Jack. You deserve to be happy again." She tried to smile, but it didn't reach her eyes, and Jack noticed.
"What's wrong, Kens? You look sad." Concern appeared in Jack's face as he realised just how sad Kensi was. It was in her eyes, he could see it clearly, although he knew she was trying hard to hide it.
"You left me on Christmas morning, Jack. No word, no goodbye, nothing. You expect me to be happy after what you did to me?" She tried to be harsh in her words, but she didn't have the energy. Instead she sounded tired.
"I'm so sorry, Kens. I was so sick, I needed help."
"I tried so hard to help you, Jack."
"I know, babe, I know you did. But I needed professional help. I was so low I had to leave. I saw what I was doing to you, to us."
"You could have left a note, spoke to me about it, Jack. You broke my heart."
"I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you, you've got to believe me. I left to save you from me."
"What! I never had a say in it? We were engaged Jack. We were a team. You weren't in it alone. You had me."
"I know, Kens, but I wasn't well. I booked myself into a clinic and stayed there for four years. It took me a long time to get well again. After the clinic, it took me a long time to get back into normal life again. I tried looking for you, but I couldn't find you. Now I know why."
"I needed you, Jack." She looked him in the eyes. She could see he was sincere in all that he told her.
"You needed me?" Jack was surprised by her comment. "We both know you can look after yourself, Kens. You may not be the world's best cook, but you try."
Tears welled up in Kensi's eyes. She hugged herself and lifted her knees up to her chest. "I was pregnant, Jack."
"What did you say?" He was in shock.
"The morning you left, I was going to tell you." She wiped her tears from off her cheeks as she tried hard to hold it together.
"What happened?" Jack suddenly wanted to know what had happened to their baby.
"I gave her up for adoption. She'll be eight soon." Jack moved around the table and knelt beside Kensi. He gently placed his hands on her arms for comfort. "I couldn't look after her on my own, Jack. I needed you and you just left." Kensi was so relieved she had disconnected the camera and microphone in the room. This was one reunion she never wanted any of her colleagues to witness or hear.
"I had no idea. I'm so sorry, Kens." He held her in his arms as she cried. He hated himself for what he had done to her. He let her cry, he was strong again, and could now be there for her. But somehow he realised that they could never be together again. He had hurt her too much.
"I saw her today for the first time since she was born." Kensi finally spoke again. "She's beautiful. Her hair is dark like ours, but she has your green eyes and long eyelashes.'
"What's her name?" Jack breathed out. He had not expected this when he met up with her again. He was a father, to a girl he didn't know.
"Piper," Kensi answered him. "She can run like you, play the guitar and definitely has your singing voice."
Jack laughed as he remembered Kensi singing voice. "You weren't that bad." Jack paused a minute before he be some serious again. "So can I meet her?"
"She wants to meet you, Jack. She's very inquisitive and asked me lots of questions today about you."
"Well that's a good sign. What about the couple who adopted her. Would they be okay, if I met Piper?"
"They wanted to see if I thought it was okay, first, knowing you didn't know about her."
"I can understand that. So are you okay with me meeting Piper?" He asked her, realising it was up to her whether he did or not.
Kensi looked Jack in the eyes and nodded. He smiled and his eyes sparkled like they used to. She returned his smile. "I'll ring them to let them know you want to meet her."
"Thanks, Kens."
"Jack. No one I work with knows about Piper. I want to keep it that way, okay?"
"Yes, Kens, I understand."
Kensi stood to make the call.