#7
48 Hours Later:
"so, why don't you tell me about how you've been handling recent events?"
"Which ones, huh? Getting stabbed in the back by my best friend, losing Gra…" Mike paused to gulp heavily, finding himself unable to so much as say her name these days "…Losing G's daughter. What is it you WANT me to talk about, Nate?. How about you answer a question… Why are you here, and at who's behest?"
"No need to be snippy, Mike"
Mike started gripping the arms of the chair tighter and tighter, to the extent that his knuckles were contrasting white against the dark flesh coloured tones of the rest of his hands. "Fuck you. I don't need this shit. I don't care if this job IS conditional on these little get togethers" Mike stood up and made moves for the door "I don't care if it was SECNAV or POTUS that dictated this session. I'm through jumping through hoops for Hetty and her fucking black ops. And yeah… you can tell her I said that"
…
"You did what?"
"I quit. I'm sick of jumping through her hoops. I'm sick of keeping secrets. I'm sick … I'm just sick of the … mind games" Mike sighed
"Mike… I know that the last few weeks…" Sydney paused, taking on board the very pointed look she was now receiving from Mike "okay… years. But you can't give up on everything, everyone in your life because of what happened with that girl"
"I love that you need to put a positive spin on everything. But…it's not just her. It's everything… the last few years, since G's been back… I just can't do it anymore" Mike replied as he got up to grab a bottle of soda from the fridge
"You think this is what Grace would have wanted?"
Mike froze mid step, of course he had thought about what she would have wanted, but he couldn't deal with the emotional guilt trip
"I love you Syd, you know that… just, please, don't… don't use her memory like that"
…
"You want to tell me who we're waiting for?"
"I promise you, Agent Callen… It'll be worth the wait."
"I don't like surprises, Kid. So spill, or I'm sure Mike'll be more than happy to debrief you"
…
Mike stormed through the security gate at the marina, leaving 2 security guards gasping for breath.
He wasn't happy about what he'd had to do. He was through playing games with the old spy. Kensi had called him, Sam had called him… both letting him know that G had been off the grid for over 2 days..
If G was off the grid, the old woman would know where he was, especially since last time anyone saw him he was with that girl… the one connected to Hetty that no one had seen or heard of before, not even a digital record… not a print, drivers license or passport.
But he was playing games….
"Mike" heard being a weak voice call from the direction of Hetty's boat
…
Mike carried her to the car and gently placed her in the back of his car, exactly where he had. He had so many questions… but there would be plenty of time for that.
"just hang on. I'm taking you to the hospital"
He was desperate for some answers, and contemplated asking a few as he drove, not that it would help the situation.
…
Now was the time to call everyone, let them know that she was there, that she wasn't dead. He knew that Vic should have been his first call… but he found that he needed to know what had happened before he started bringing other people into this little bubble.
Just watching her lay there… it was like when she was a kid, if he could ignore the scars and all the rest. He felt this need to touch her, just to make sure this wasn't a hallucination.
"Stop watching me. I'm clearly not going anywhere" Grace said speaking softly "please Mike… don't tell anyone I'm…."
"what, Alive?" Mike replied slightly annoyed "Do you know what you've put us all through… huh?"
Grace rolled over in the hospital bed so she could look at Mike
"I had to be dead… I made a deal with gran. She would get dad back to working with you guys and I'd… I wanted him to be himself again. After what happened with Kristina, he needed you guys. And having him walk about town with no idea of the good he has done… he deserved a second chance"
"I'm not pissed that he's with us again… even if we have to watch what we say to him. I'm pissed that you didn't speak to any of us before you did this"
"Mike. Please…I don't want to talk about it anymore"
"Okay. Well how about you explain the baby… huh. The one I assume you or that kid dropped at Vic's place"
"I don't want to talk about it"
"You don't start giving me answers I'll have a doctor in here in 30 seconds and have you held on a 72 hour psych hold. Don't think I won't"
"yes I had Andrea leave her at Vic's . Too many people there knew me there. I couldn't risk it"
"how did you wind up having a baby. I thought you were gay"
"I don't want to talk about it"
Mike could see her clamming up and turning away from him. "Syd has the kid… She's doing fine. But eventually we're gonna need to talk about this… you can't bury your head in the sand"
He stopped taking when a nurse came in to injected something into Grace's canula and then left the pair
"How did you have a kid" He asked again, despite Grace getting groggier from whatever she'd been injected with Eventually she dropped off into sleep still not giving any answers.
Mike thought back to what Rose had told him all those weeks ago… about that baby's paternity
…
Mike pulled out his Cell, he knew he shouldn't use it in the hospital, but this couldn't wait.
He dialled a number and waited as the phone rang and rang
"Syd. Can you meet me at the hospital?"
[…]
"No I'm fine. But I need you to watch someone for me"
[…]
"I'll text you the address, but hurry please"
…
30 minutes later
"Who's so urgent you needed me to leave Jake with the Beales?"
"She's in there" mike replied, starting to question if this had been a good idea
He guided Syd into the room, forgetting briefly about the stroller, which he went back for and pushed into the room along with Sydney
"She's out of it. And she's not in a good way physically. The doc says she has plenty of scar tissue….. she won't talk about it, or the baby. Only thing she's said is what her deal with Hetty was…Can you watch her for a day or so. I need to make a short trip. If you need to… call Kens or Sam. But G can't know"
…
Mike had driven at high speed, managing to reach san diego navel base in less than an hour. There was a sailor he needed to talk with…
He flashed his NCIS credentials to the security guard and drove straight down to the piers. He had to get this done.. and the sooner the better, for his own sanity.
He pulled over and jumped out of the car and ran up the gang plank and on board the carrier. Mike had dug deep into the records after Rose did the DNA test on the child… he was intimately familiar with the male donor's record. But this… no, there was no way he could, or would, allow this to go unpunished.
…
This was not a good idea. Mike knew it. Letting his emotions take control… but he knew no other way of dealing with this…. It either ended in a prison cell, or at the bottom of a bottle. Either way… the end of Agent Michael Renko, and the end of him and Syd. G couldn't do this… god only knew where he was, but he… back when he was the 'real' G Callen… he would've burned anything and everything... every one, that stood between him and the one that hurt Grace. Mike, Sam, Kens… even Deeks… Grace was family to them. She was like a daughter to Mike after … well, everything.
"Where's O'Donnel?" Mike almost growled while tightly gripping his SIG.
…
Mike was seething, ready to kill anyone who stood in his way. He had heard the whispers as he walked the halls of the aircraft carrier, he would have too if he saw a civilian waling the halls with his handgun. Mike had answered too many questions, and knew the smell of a cover up. No way it could have happened and no one on board knew, saw or heard anything
"lieutenant O'Donnel? I'm Special Agent Mike Renko… NCIS. I have a few questions for you regarding the sexual assault of an NCIS Special Agent."
"no way. Go fuck yourself. You can't come in here and tell me what to do"
"There're 2 ways we can do this…"
"Is one of them the easy way" the lieutenant replied sarcastically, refusing to even glance in Mikes direction
"No. The easy way is cuffs, Scum like you don't get an easy way… you remember special agent smith. We have evidence… but you don't care about that do you!? Neither do I… what I care about is my family. And you hurt one of mine. You will pay for it… I don't care if I get the death penalty for this"
"For what? Fucking some girl who was gagging for it"
Mikes blood had already been boiling since he left LA… he didn't want to arrest or prosecute O'Donnell. Mike wanted to kill him, but that was too good for him. There were other ways, but he knew if he further committed himself to this path, that it only ended one way…
Mike lifted his arm, tightening his grip on the SIG pistol.
All that could be hear were multiple gun shots and the sound of something thudding against the bulkheads, before some screaming and Mike walked out of the compartment dragging the bloody mess of a naval lieutenant behind him, screaming for help… any help.
There were plenty of looks as Mike passed by the various compartments. To be fair something would be wrong if there weren't looks. Mike had beaten the lieutenant to within an inch of his life, shot him… more than one, most noticeably in his ear, leaving little in the way of the original organ. Mike didn't have a mark on him… his 'victim' however was screaming in pain, begging for someone… anyone to help him, to get the crazy special agent away from him.
Mike had no intention of letting anyone get in his way… if it required it, Mike would shoot anyone and everyone that got in his way. And when he ran out of rounds, he'd get really nasty and resort to some tricks he learned with G when they were seconded to Mossad for a period in the late 90s. He had no desire to hurt anyone but the guy he currently was taking great pleasure in causing intense pain, but when it came to family, he'd do the same thing that G would have done way back when, the same thing Sam did to Sidorov.
The question that Syd would ask, was whether the force he had used was required. Honestly…. Was it necessary? no. Did it feel good inflicting harm on the guy that hurt Grace?, damn fucking right it did. And Mike had a lot more to inflict on him, and that's the thing that was driving him… causing O'Connell as much pain as he could… and if Mike could prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he had Raped Grace… Mike would cut him till the lieutenant didn't have a drop of blood left in his body, and his heart had beat its last.