The elevator doors opened, Anton and Dee attempted to step out, but Tony stepped on with them, "We got a dead Lieutenant at Quantico."
"Jason getting the truck?" Anton inquired.
"Nope."
"Is he going to meet us there, Boss?"
"Nope, he took a personal day."
"After being back for one day?" Dee questioned, looking at Anton, "Is his arm still bothering him?"
Anton shrugged his shoulders, not knowing the answer.
Tony walked through the front door of a military housing. A woman in a white dress uniform was on the ground in the living room. She was knelt forward, a large pool of blood under her, "What do we got, Jimmy?"
"A Lieutenant Candace Jorgensen." Palmer replied, pointing to a coffee table, "Her ID was in her wallet."
Tony stepped over and looked at it.
"Max, help me turn her over."
Palmer's assistant snapped another photo before squatting next to the dead woman and helped Jimmy turned her over to her back, a large KA-Bar knife was stuck in her stomach.
"Looks to be about 10-12 stabs wounds to her abdomen with a standard KA-Bar, Marine issued?" Palmer estimated. Max took a few photos of the knife and stab wounds, "Get the gurney, Max."
Max nodded and went to get the gurney as Palmer took the liver probe out of his bag and slid it into the victim.
Tony noticed bloody marks leaning towards another room. He carefully moved over, seeing droplets of blood in the sink, "Our murderer might be injured." He called out, but there was no answer, "Palmer?"
A large thud made Tony turn his head. He stepped out of the bathroom and his eyes looked down, the KA-Bar knife was no longer lodged into the woman's stomach. He turned his head, seeing Palmer on the ground, unconscious. He started to pull his weapon when he was shoved into the wall, his gun knocked from his hand.
A man in fatigues thrusted the bloody KA-Bar into Tony's stomach over and over and over again until he slid down the wall, his stomach covered in blood.
The man bent over, picking up Tony's weapon and stepped towards the kitchen when his legs were pulled out from under him. He turned over, looking back and was met with a punch to the face, knocking the gun from his hand.
Tony jumped up and went to the punch the man again, but was kicked and knocked down onto the dead woman.
The man, still clutching his KA-Bar got to his knees and came down hard into Tony's chest with the knife.
Tony grabbed the man's wrists, keeping the knife and his hand secured to his body, seeing a MP arm band around his bicep.
The man reached back, his fingertips pawwing at Tony's handgun as both men fought to get the upper hand. He stopped and threw a punch, striking Tony in the face, knocking him back yet again. He grabbed the gun and pulled it forward.
Tony turned his head, seeing the liver probe sticking out of the dead lieutenant. He quickly grabbed it and before the man could react, he jammed it into the man's ear as far as he could shove it.
The man fell back, dropping the gun onto Tony's chest.
Max appeared in the doorway, Tony shot up, pointing his gun at her. She let out of scream. He let out a huge sigh as he fell back, letting his gun arm relax against his side.
Suddenly, the man sat up, reaching his arms out towards Tony.
Tony lifted his gun, sending a bullet through the man's forehead, finishing him off.
Anton, Dee and several other people ran into the house with weapon's drawn, their eyes catching the first glimpse of the carnage, "Boss?"
"Check Palmer." Tony uttered, waving behind him with his free hand.
Dee and Max hurried over to Palmer, he was coming around, rubbing at the back of his head, "Looks like he's gonna have a helluva headache." Dee diagnosed.
"Boss." Anton whispered, looking at the Tony's stomach, "Call an ambulance!"
"No." Tony grunted. He placed his hands on his stomach and pulled up on his shirt, showing that he was wearing his dragonskin armor. He began to laugh, but quickly stopped, "I'm getting way too old for this shit." He grunted in pain.
"You're also using a dead body as a pillow...Boss." Anton stated with a crooked smile.
Tony turned his head and groaned as he sat up again. This time Anton pulled him up. His hand immediately went to his stomach, holding it.
"You okay?" Anton asked.
"Yeah." Tony took a step, but wobbled a bit as his hand slid up to his chest. He tried to take another step, but dropped his knees and fell forward.
"Boss?"
Tony didn't respond or move.
"BOSS!" Anton yelled out, "Call an ambulance! NOW!"
Becca wrapped her fingers around her father's wrist and shook it, "Daddy."
"Wake up, Daddy." Bella cried out.
"Hey." Junior called out, pulling them away from the hospital bed.
"Why isn't Daddy wakin' up, Tony?" Becca asked, starting to get scared.
"Shhhh."
Bella broke away from her brother and tried to climb into the bed, "Daddy!"
Junior hurried over, picking Bella up, "Bella, stop it."
"No, you stop it, I want my Daddy!"
Junior pulled Bella into a tight embrace, "It's okay."
Becca ran over and started shaking her father again, "Come on, Daddy."
"Becca." Ziva whispered, standing in the doorway, "Stop."
"But, Mommy."
"Go." Ziva pointed towards Junior, "I told you to handle them."
"I'm trying, Mom." Junior shook his head.
"You're bigger than them, just do it." A frustrated Ziva ordered.
"Mom?" A voice called out.
Ziva backed up, turning, seeing Tali, "Where is he?"
"Where's who?"
"You know who!"
"He's in the waiting room, why? How's Dad?"
Ziva slid past Tali and aggressively moved towards the waiting room.
"Mom!" Tali called out.
"Tali!" Becca called out and Tali ran into the room.
Ziva came crashing through the door, seeing Gibbs and Abby.
Abby shot up from her seat, "Ziva?"
Ziva scanned the room, seeing Anton and Dee and finally Jason. She walked over to Jason, thrusting her palms into his chest, "Where were you!" She yelled, continuing to push him.
"ZIVA!" Gibbs yelled out and rushed over, taking a hold of her.
"Where were you!" Ziva yelled again, her entire body shaking "You are suppose to be this...whatever the hell you are and...he, he's 60 years old, you should have been there! And don't you dare say you're sorry, don't you dare!"
"Hey, it's not his fault, the guy was a MP." Anton spoke up, "They're suppose to be on our side."
Ziva turned, looking at Anton, she lunged towards him.
"Hit me." Jason stated through gritted teeth, drawing back Ziva's ire, "Not him."
Ziva shoved Jason pne last time before hurrying back towards her husband's room, wiping the tears from her eyes as she did so. She ducked into the bathroom and looked into the mirror. She watched as tears streamed down her cheeks. She lowered her head and began sobbing. She turned on the faucet and splashed water into her face several times, trying to hide her tears.
"Mom?" Junior called out.
Ziva grabbed several paper towels and rubbed at her eyes. She took a deep breath, "Yes?"
"You okay?"
Ziva opened the door and stepped out, looking up at her son, "I'm sorry I yelled at you."
"It's okay." Junior opened his arms and hugged his mother, "Hey, someone wants to talk to you."
Ziva pulled back, she could hear Becca and Bella laughing. A smile washed over her face as she flashed towards Tony's room. She turned into it, seeing the twins sitting next to their father on the bed. His eye droopy, but he was smiling all the same.
"Mommy!" Becca smiled, "Daddy was singing us the Becca and Bella song."
"He was making THEM feel better." Tali whispered to her with a smile.
Ziva lifted her hand to Tali's cheek and slowly began rubbing it.
"He's fine, Mom."
"I know." Ziva smiled. She moved over to the bed and leaned over the railing giving her husband a kiss, "You scared me." She whispered.
"I scared myself." Tony admitted, "But the kisses are making me brave again." He grinned.
Ziva chuckled and kissed him again.
The twins giggled. Ziva pulled away, looking at them.
"You think Mommy and Daddy kissing is funny?" Tony asked and started tickling them, "I'll give you something to giggle about it." And they did.
"Mr. DiNozzo?" A man called out, walking into the room. Ziva turned, looking at the man.
"Yes?" Tony said, letting Becca and Bella's ponytails slide between his fingers.
"I'm Dr. Long, you were brought in after sustaining a mild heart attack."
"Mild?" Ziva questioned.
"Yes, he never really lost consciousness."
"Then why wouldn't he wake up?"
"Oh, once we determined he was stable, we performed an emergency coronary angiogram and we gave him a sedative just in case. Given his state, it would've been bad for him to wake up and struggle and possibly hurt himself further." The doctor told, "As for the results, I have some good news and some bad news. While most of your arteries heading into your heart were relatively in good shape, one is 85% blocked. Now, we'd really like to schedule you with Interventional cardiology to place..."
"Do whatever you need to." Ziva interrupted.
"Good." The doctor nodded, "I'll set it up."
"Is he going to be okay?" A worried Tali asked.
"As long as he cuts out fatty foods." The doctor responsed.
"You're so screwed, Dad." Junior stated.
"Anthony DiNozzo, Junior that is not funny!" Ziva scolded her son.
Tony laughed, "I thought it was."
"Tony, stop it, please." Ziva begged.
Tony acknowledged her with a nod
"Ok, I'll let you get back to you family, Mr. DiNozzo." The doctor said, leaving the room.
"Thanks, doc."
"What did that mean, Daddy?" Becca asked.
"Daddy just needs to take better care of himself, baby."
"I thought that was Mommy's job, Daddy." Becca smiled.
"Heh. Naw, that's all on Daddy. I've been feeding myself far longer than she has." He smiled, kissing the top of Becca's head. He slowly rotated his head, looking at Tali, "Did Jason bring you?"
"Yeah." Tali nodded.
Ziva looked at Tony, "You knew Jason was in New York?"
"I would hope so, Daddy gave him the keys to the Ferrari." Tali laughed, "And it's fine, by the way."
"You did what?" A confused Ziva asked, "Why?"
"I told him to go." Tony replied, "The way he looked at me this morning, it was just heartbreaking."
Ziva lifted her hands to her face and just sighed.
"What, Mom?" Tali asked.
Ziva quickly made her back into the waiting room, "Where's Jason?"
"He's gone." Abby said, "But here, he left these." She held out the keys to the Ferrari, "How's Tony?"
Ziva took the keys and sighed, "He's fine, in bed singing. You can all go back and see him, I think."
"Jason left?" Tali asked, following her mother into the waiting room, "Mom...what did you do?"
Ziva lowered her head and muttered something in Hebrew as she rubbed her brow.
Jason walked into his anemically decorated apartment. He sat down a pizza box and a bucket of chicken on a small table next to his duct taped black recliner.
Jason stepped into the kitchen and grabbed a fifth of Jack Daniels from the cabinet, a large drinking glass and a 2-liter of Mt. Dew from the mini-fridge before returning to his living room, "Pick your poison, Mrs. DiNozzo."
Ziva stepped out of a darkened corner, "How long have you known I was here?"
"Long enough, the glass is for you, I'll drink out of the bottle."
Ziva walked over, picking up the lid of the chicken bucket, "You even eat like my husband, who's doing fine, by the way."
"I know, I talked to Tali a little while ago." Jason dropped his keys next to the food and sat down and turned on his television, "Xbox, on." He called out and the television popped on, a large green X appeared on the screen, "Netflix, go."
"Do you like movies?" Ziva asked.
"Depends."
"On?"
"If they suck or not, I guess."
Ziva smiled as he pulled a chicken leg from the bucket and took a bite, "Your apartment is a craphole."
"I prefer shithole, but thanks all the same."
"So, my Tali has had sex here?" Ziva blurted out, her eyes glued to Jason, looking for a reaction.
"No."
"No?"
"She's never even been here before."
"She's not missing out on anything special then." Ziva looked around the apartment, the only thing of value was his television and Xbox, "Right?"
"Whatever you say."
"Are you going to look at me?"
Jason turned and looked towards Ziva as he grabbed a piece of chicken, "What do you want?"
"How did you know it was me?"
"One advantage to being assaulted is that the person is up close and personal."
"So, you're saying, you smelled me?"
Jason turned his head back towards the television, "Coconut with a twist of vanilla, the Boss smells like it, too, well, to a lesser extent, but I just presumed it was you and not him, for obvious reasons."
"Knowing someones smell does not mean you know them."
"No, knowing someone means you know them."
"What do you know about me?"
"I know you don't understand your daughter at all and that worries you. And you probably think she hates you."
"And you understand Tali, yes?"
"Yeah, she talks to me."
"Oh...yeah, of course she does...then tell me about Tali."
Jason was silent and Ziva moved towards the front door.
"She loves her family, dearly. She loves you, but she doesn't understand why you're so hard on her. She lashes out at you in her comedy, because of it. I told her I didn't like that side of her, because it's not her. She's sweet and smart and just adorable. I mean, she's SO damn adorable." Jason smiled and followed it with a laugh, "And I love her laugh, it just makes me smile everytime I hear it. And today, we got a hotdog from a vendor and she asked for ketchup and people were literally giving her these looks, like, oh my god, she has the audacity to put ketchup on a hotdog? And what did she do? She just laughed and told them to go fuck themselves." He laughed, "And that's what I love about her, she likes what she likes."
Ziva moved back to the small table, "What do you think of me?"
"I take the fifth out of respect for your husband and daughter."
"No, I want you to tell me, what do you think of me?"
"I think you're a bitch."
"Then you and I are in agreement." Ziva squatted, getting eye level with Jason, "I was a bitch and I'm sorry."
Jason's head shot back, his eyes gazing at Ziva, "What?"
"Tali is special, she's..."
"Believe me, I know and I told Tony I wasn't good enough for her."
"You're right, you're not good enough for her...but no one is." Ziva stood up, pouring herself a glass of whiskey, "But..." She downed the drink in one gulp and let out a small sigh, "...she likes you. And my husband likes you and I guess, maybe it is time, I began to like you, too."
"I'd like that."
Ziva walked over to the front door, "Do not call me a bitch again, that one was for free, but the next will not be." She opened the door, but looked back, "I will give you a thousand dollars to move, my baby deserves better than this."
Jason laughed, "I'm glad you weren't here a month ago, it smelled like dead cat."
Ziva shook her head, "You are not helping your cause."
"Understood, I'll start looking tomorrow."
"Thank you...and one last thing, I doubt very seriously that I could beat you now, but if you hurt my baby girl in any way, with my dying breath, I will cut your balls off." Ziva nodded with a smile and left the apartment, closing the door behind her.
AN- Nothing says love like betting your balls against it!