Title: Shaitan

Author: Redwing/CSIphile

AN: Nearly 100 reviews, that is the coolest thing like….ever! Thank you, every last one for making my very first crossover a huge success. I just found out it was nominated for an SVU fiction award. Its my first nomination ever as a writer in 2 years, I'm so excited! So big thanks go out to you guys, the best readers ever!

AN2: Not sure what happened the first time I posted this. My betas comments didn't go away. Weird. Sorry about that, here's a prettier copy.

Chapter 9: Unpleasant Nights and Good Mornings

New York Memorial

Flushing, NY

True to his word, the doctor signed Kate's release papers at two in the morning. Tony had stopped by briefly earlier to tell Gibbs the evidence had been collected, and dropped off with CSU. He also wanted to check on Kate and drop off a car for Gibbs before heading back to the hotel and his bed.

By 2:30, Gibbs had Kate safely in her hotel bed, and was getting into his own. He knew his internal clock would wake him at the appropriate time. Kate would not be a pleasant person to be around tomorrow, but Gibbs didn't care if it meant she was alive.

The first time he woke her was not a enjoyable experience, and if it was any indication of her attitude for the remainder of the night, it was going to be a long one. Two hours after drifting off, Gibbs naturally woke up and crept into her room through the connecting door. There was just enough moonlight coming through the windows that he could see her form curled into a tight ball, facing away from him on her right side. He imagined she couldn't sleep on the left without pain.

He approached the bed and touched her shoulder lightly, calling her name softly in the darkness, "Kate…" No response. This time he shook her shoulder lightly and called her name again. "Kate…"

Nothing.

He was starting to get worried, she hadn't moved a muscle, when her tired voice resonated in the silent room, "You may want to take into consideration that I sleep with a gun under my pillow, Gibbs."

He smiled at the memory of Kate attempting to explain herself while being sandwiched between he and Tony. The look on her face had been priceless. "I'm well aware of that, Agent Todd. I'm just going by doctor's orders."

She rolled over slightly, putting him in her line of sight. He could see the bandage covering her forehead. It was starting to turn pink in one spot from blood seeping through, which was perfectly normal, "Fuck doctors orders, let me sleep."

He was startled by the obscenity, Kate rarely swore, and only occasionally in front of him. "Only two hours at a time, Kate. You heard the man."

She rolled back over and mumbled something decidedly X-rated into her pillow, essentially dismissing him.

Gibbs shook his head and chuckled slightly. Yeah, she was going to be a real ray of sunshine tomorrow.

Twice more that night Gibbs went into her room and woke her up. Both times had been met with thinly veiled hostility. Shortly after going to bed the last time, nearly 7:30 AM, his phone rang. Sighing, he picked it up and answered in a gruff voice. He didn't exactly get a lot of sleep either. "Gibbs."

"It's Cragen. CSU called a bit ago. They went over all the bomb parts. I'll give you directions and your team can meet us there."

Gibbs agreed and wrote down the directions on a hotel pad of paper and called Tony. Getting up, he stretched his muscles before standing. He had slept the night in a pair of UNLV shorts and T-shirt instead of just boxers, knowing he would be going in and out of Kate's room. Again he crossed the threshold between their rooms, intent on waking her up for the last time that day.

When he walked into the room, however, Kate was nowhere to be seen, and for one second fear pulsed through his veins. Until he realized the shower was going.

Dammit Jethro. You're going to give yourself a heart attack if you start thinking every time she's not in your sight something's happened. But after the nights events he couldn't blame himself. He had come dangerously close to losing her, something he doesn't even want to contemplate. He had gotten so used to having her around, he couldn't imagine her not being there. He couldn't fathom another agent at her desk, fighting with Tony, being on the same wavelength as him all the time.

At that moment Gibbs realized how much he'd let Kate in and wondered when it happened. Sometime after the hostage incident he was sure, but when exactly would be anyone's guess. She had done it slowly. Without realizing it, Kate had pushed her way into Gibbs' life in ways he'd never expected. He knew she was something special the first day they met when she refused to defy a direct order, but was willing to hijack Air Force One. So when Gibbs found out she resigned, he had made a snap decision, adding her to their team, and his life…

His thoughts were broken by the sound of the water being shut off. Without making any sound, he walked back into his room, carefully closing the doors behind him.

Thirty minutes later he was dressed as usual in khaki pants and a polo shirt. It was too warm to deal with a jacket, so he left that draped over the chair. He was just putting his gun in its belt holster when a soft knock on the door gave him pause, he wasn't sure if it was the main door or the connecting one.

Again, someone knocked, and this time Gibbs turned to his right and the connecting doors. Kate. He adjusted his holster and walked to the door, opening it. His heart constricted at the sight in front of him.

She was dressed as usual, black slacks and a soft-looking red turtleneck he was sure he'd seen before. But her face was what got him. The bruises seemed to have deepened in color and increased in size overnight; shades of purple, black, yellow and deep red stained the left side of her face from forehead to jaw, covering her entire cheek. Her lower lip was split, but the area around her eye seemed only slightly swollen. That seemed strange considering the viciousness of the other injuries.

"Makeup only covers so much," she commented lightly after an uncomfortable silence.

For a moment he didn't speak, just looked at her, and then her words sunk in. "Oh! God, Kate I'm sorry. I didn't mean…," he stopped mid-ramble, unsure of what to say, a rarity for him.

She merely cocked her right eyebrow at him in amusement.

Instead of trying to clarify himself, he reached out one hand tentatively, coming within centimeters of her battered face. She didn't flinch or move away, holding her ground instead - almost challenging him.

Gibbs had never backed down in his life, and he wasn't about to now, not with so much on the line. With his eyes locked on hers, his hand completed the motion, fingertips coming to a gentle stop on her jawline, the least abused spot. When she again didn't flinch from his touch, he moved his hand slowly, allowing his fingers to skim across her bruised skin.

He moved in a slow, steady motion, never letting his eyes leave her deep brown ones. As the contact continued, the air around them seemed to change, becoming heavier somehow, and electric. He could barely breathe as he relished the feeling of her smooth, warm skin under his fingers. Gibbs honestly couldn't remember ever feeling like this before with a mere touch. His heart was racing and he could hear it in his ears. He felt clammy, unsure of himself, but at the same time confident.

He slid down her jaw, allowing his thumb to graze lightly over the cut on her lip before starting up her cheekbone. Just the tips of his fingers touched her, he didn't want to cause her pain. Slowly, he traced the line of the bruising across her cheek bone near her left eye and finally up to her temple, his eyes still never leaving hers. He allowed his fingers to linger at her hairline a moment, tracing the edges of the medical tape almost reverently.

Finally breaking eye contact, he looked at the square white bandage adorning her forehead. Gently he ran his fingers across the cotton surface toward her temple, as if one touch would make the wound disappear. Pursing his lips, he let his hand linger on the bandage, but returned his eyes to hers. She looked…sad.

She reached up one hand and covered his, reassuring him that she was fine, alive and breathing in front of him. Somehow she had known what he was thinking, where his thoughts had been since the whole thing started; he wanted to take her in his arms and hold her as long as he could. He could imagine how her small body would feel against him. But as it was, they'd gone far enough, probably too far.

She increased the contact by leaning into his hand for just an instant before pulling away. For one moment he missed the contact, but in the next, the palm of her hand came into contact with his cheek. She didn't move though, merely left it there as she stared into his eyes. Dropping her hand from his face, she allowed her fingers to just graze the stubble that was starting to grow. Before her hand made it too far he grabbed it and brought the palm that had recently warmed his face to his lips, barely brushing the skin.

Her eyes widened in shock at his actions, but made no move to stop it. He watched her blink slowly, as if confused by the turn of events. Smiling sadly he dropped her hand, still not breaking eye contact. The electricity in the air was still there, but it had diminished.

Words finally permeated the air as Kate softly said his name, her voice dripping with concern, "Gibbs"

"I won't let him near you again." His tone was vicious, unrelenting and the words offered little apology for what had just happened.

"Gibbs, you can't promise that." Her words were soft.

"I just did. And I don't break promises." He needed her to understand.

She looked down for a moment as if contemplating his words, "I know, but…"

One finger hooked under her chin and tilted her head toward him. "No but's."

She merely smiled and reached up, brushing some wayward strands of hair off his forehead. It was an intimate gesture and it mildly surprised Gibbs. But in those few moments, the rules of NCIS seemed to fade enough to allow some unusual behavior on both sides.

She was about to speak again when insistent knocking on Gibbs' door interrupted. He sighed, and reached out one more time, cupping her unmarred cheek in his hand. They both knew this could never happen again. He had been burned badly by a workplace relationship and she had been forced to resign over one.

"Boss! Hey…boss!" Tony shouted, which could be heard clearly through the door.

Without a word Gibbs stepped away from her and headed toward the door, but not before giving her a small wink. She smiled in return and went back to her room, sitting down carefully, her muscles starting to get sore from the recent abuse, and putting on her shoes. She didn't want to take the pain medications that had been prescribed since that would make her all but useless to the team.

Standing a bit too quickly, she was jolted by pain running through her back muscles. Unbidden, a moan escaped her lips and she sighed, annoyed with her body's reaction. Walking somewhat slower than usual, Kate passed through the connecting doors, a small shudder going through her as she stepped into the spot where she and Gibbs had been just minutes before.

It took Tony all of three seconds when she walked into the room to stop his discussion with Gibbs and take a step toward her, inspecting her face carefully. "Ow, Kate."

"Well, that's one way of putting it."

Tony's face turned serious, a rare event for the young agent. "You okay?"

Kate sensed he wanted to reach out and touch her and was thankful he restrained himself. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Just not so pretty looking for a while."

Suddenly he advanced on her, swinging one arm lightly around her shoulders, "Oh, Kate, you're always pretty."

She titled her head at him, "Wow, Tony, I think that was actually a compliment."

"Been known to happen," he said, removing his arm and gave her a quick wink. She merely shook her head and traded a look with Gibbs who had been watching their interaction with interest.

All three left Gibbs' room and headed for CSU, hoping they would have some answers.

New York Memorial Hospital

Flushing, NY

Elliot had been moved into a semi-private temporary room shortly after Olivia had fallen asleep. The doctor had decided to admit him for observation, given that his concussion had been more severe than Kate's. Olivia had moved easily into the room with him, re-staking her claim next to the bed. The nurses hadn't questioned her presence. Thankfully the chair she occupied was significantly more comfortable than the ER stool and, after settling in with one hand again covering Elliot's uncasted one, she had fallen back to sleep.

Several times a nurse had come in and woke Elliot up to monitor his head injury and pain level. Olivia felt he was downplaying how much pain he was in, but since he was only awake long enough for the nurse to ask him how he felt, there was no point pursuing it with him.

The first thing she was aware of was the warm sun on her face. It felt good after the rain of the night before. Blinking slowly, she first looked at the clock, 7:30 AM. Late for her, but considering what happened the night before, not all that surprising. Next she moved her eyes to the bed, only to find Elliot staring right back at her, a gleam in his eye.

"Hey," she said and slowly uncurled herself from the chair. Olivia could feel the stiffness easing as she moved her extremities and stretched. "How long have you been awake?"

"Not long."

"Mmmmm," she muttered, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "Why didn't you wake me?"

"You looked like you needed the sleep. Though I was tempted, you didn't look real comfortable," he flashed her a smile.

"Comfortable enough," she paused and reached out, running her knuckles lightly over his cheek. "How you feeling?"

"Not too bad, all things considered." He smiled at her again and reached up with his good hand, capturing her fingers in his grasp. Slowly they intertwined their fingers together, each relishing the feeling of the other. "How's Kate?" he finally asked after a long silence.

"She's fine. Has a couple of bumps, some bruises and a concussion. She was released last night into Gibbs' care."

He smirked at that. "I'm sure she's in good hands." Suddenly his face changed as something occurred to him, "Wait, how come she got to go home and I didn't?"

Olivia shrugged. "Luck of the draw and your broken arm. It took a while to set, so they kept you around."

He looked at her dubiously, but nodded, "When do I get sprung from this place?"

"Soon, I'm sure."

"Good, I can't wait to be released into your care," he smiled mischievously at her.

"I'm sure you can't." She leaned across his body, steadying herself with one hand on the other side of his body, putting her face within inches of his. This close she could see a light layer of dirt covering his face. Reaching out a hand she wiped at one cheek, removing some of the grime from the night before. Looking back into his eyes, she leaned in the rest of the way, brushing her lips lightly against his.

She had intended it to be a quick kiss, but the second she tasted him she had to have more and kissed him again, harder this time. Elliot reciprocated with equal force, raising one hand behind her head and holding her to him as they kissed with fervor.

Elliot broke first, pulling his face away, but leaving the hand in her hair, stroking softly, thankful they had removed his IV early that morning.

She pursed her lips and said with a smile, "We weren't supposed to do that."

"I'm not going to tell, are you?"

Her impossibly dark eyes sparkled. "No."

He smirked and put his hand down, resting it on her knee. They sat in silence for several minutes before he spoke. "I knew what it was the second it happened."

"What?" she asked, honestly confused by his sudden change in topic and demeanor. One second he was joking with her, kissing her, the next his tone was serious.

"When I stepped on the trigger, I knew what it was right away, there's no click quite like it." She said nothing, just nodded for him to continue.

"We swept the downstairs first and it was clear, but there were drag marks in the dirt on the floor leading upstairs. I thought he might be hiding the women there before dumping them, so we followed the trail, right to a trap." His tone was annoyed, bordering on anger.

"You didn't know…"

Anger flashed in his eyes, though not directed at her. "We should have waited for back up."

"Yeah? And then there would have been more of you injured, maybe even dead." She leaned into him, her eyes blazing. "You saved yours and Kate's life. If you hadn't recognized that noise for what it is, we'd be planning a funeral."

He was silent; he knew she was right, she always was. He sighed loudly and put his head back on the pillow.

She touched his arm lightly. "Why don't I go see about getting you out of here and call Cragen with what you told me."

She started to stand, but his hand gripping her wrist stopped her. "I'm sorry, Liv."

She gave him a half smile. "Don't be. Just…don't do that to me again."

They both knew it was a hollow request, the nature of the job pretty much insured that. But for the minute they pretended that the words meant something, if only to ease their own minds.

CSU

One Center Street , 10 am

Gibbs ran his hands through his short hair. "So, what you're telling me is that the bomb was home-made of gunpowder, a metal pipe, a fuse and a pressure switch? Nothing of interest."

The CSU agent looked annoyed at his frustrated tone. "It's a standard bomb; any idiot with the internet could put it together. The only thing probative was some white dust on the outside of the pipe. I sent that for analysis."

He nodded and paced slightly in front of the table between himself and the tech. The other two members of his team, along with Munch and Fin, watched carefully, as if waiting for him to suddenly uncoil and strike down the technician.

Kate's calm voice permeated the air and stopped him, "It was just gunpowder?" The tech nodded and she continued, "That wouldn't do a significant amount of damage compared with other ingredients, would it?"

"Depends on the location of the bomb," he explained. "Other explosives would have done significant damage and a lot faster, you probably wouldn't have been able to outrun it. If Stabler hadn't recognized the noise for what it was, then you could have ended up in the basement instead of here."

She seemed to contemplate this a minute. "Are there other pressure switches that don't make a noise they could have used?"

"Sure."

She turned to Gibbs, "He didn't want us dead. Not by a long shot. He KNEW we would recognize that noise and bolt. He knew we'd be injured, but if we moved fast enough, we'd be alive. He didn't care one way or the other if we lived or died…."

"Bastard," Gibbs hissed. "He's toying with us now."

She nodded.

He turned and looked at Tony, "I want you, Munch and Fin to dig up every shred of information about this guy. I want to know what schools he went too, his mother's maiden name, his blood type, the first pot he pissed in. FIND IT."

Tony nodded. "What about you and Kate, boss?"

Now he turned to the detectives. "You think your psychologist would mind a visit?"

Fin shook his head. "Lemme give him a call."

FBI Offices

26 Federal Plaza

Gibbs watched with interest as the Asian man paced in front of several huge picture windows, which gave a formidable view of the city. Huang had been quiet for nearly five minutes and Gibbs was getting agitated. He wasn't a patient man, he wanted answers and he wanted them now.

Finally, George spoke, every word measured carefully, "Well, your FBI profiler did an excellent job, but with the new information…it's interesting."

"Interesting how?" Gibbs asked somewhat tersely, which earned him a look from Kate who was seated next to him in front of Huang's desk.

"Serial killers typically don't change pattern or crime. They do what they do for a specific reason. It makes sense to them. So for one of them to suddenly make such an alarming turn is unusual. Something has changed his mindset, perhaps it's being in his hometown again. Going after the police is a bold move, yet since the bomb was easily escapable. He wanted you to know he knows you're onto him. It's a game now, more so than before."

He stopped a moment and consulted the file. "He may have wanted to stop after Newport, to avoid capture, so he came to New York where he felt safe. Maybe it's the only place he does. But when he saw Allison celebrating it brought it all back for him, the anger, the frustration, the resentment…" He paused again.

"Your suspect was probably rejected or passed over by a high ranking female officer and now he sees the victims as whoever slighted him. He's taking his revenge out on them. Something in him snapped before the first murder. He was probably a behavior problem for the military, possibly kicked out because of it."

"We are pulling Richard Hamilton's file now, but what I need to know, Doc, is what his next move is."

"I think you're also correct regarding his motivation. As soon as he killed in his hometown he decided this would be his last stand, and what better way to end his rampage than by taking out those who tried to stop him. He would go down in infamy as the only serial killer to kill the people looking for him first." He paused once more before delivering the one piece of news Gibbs didn't want, "He's coming after your team."

Federal Plaza

He watched shrouded in the shadows from across the street as the two NCIS officers left the FBI headquarters. He zoned in on his next target. She was easy to spot, her brown hair was being whipped around by the post-storm wind. They had met twice before, last night ever so briefly and in the alley of Newport. Both times he'd come close to making her his next prize. Both times he was interrupted. First in Rhode Island; he'd had enough time to incapacitate her, but not enough to carry her away and complete the mission. Her companions had stopped the process. It had disturbed him greatly, but not more than finding out she wasn't a real Marine. It had infuriated him, the little bitch had tried to trick him. Trick him. She would have ruined it all, she wasn't one of them.

After that near miss in Newport he had tried to stop, he really had, he wasn't ready to be caught just yet. But it was so hard, especially when he was in that bar and the women were right there. Tempting him, calling to him to be punished, they didn't deserve the position they were in. Their gender had insured their rank over his, because he had a dick he was stuck, while some bitch went ahead of him. Never again. Then when he saw Allison and her slut friends, he couldn't allow her to take his spot again, no woman would be able to. So he'd done to her what he had done so many times before. It felt so good, so right to watch her life being squeezed out of her, as his life had been squeezed out of him.

After Allison, Richard knew what had to be done, what should be done, because he also knew they would come after him, they always did. The perfect ending to his mission. Kill the bitch. The one that had impersonated a Marine, she would be his crowning glory, the end of his run. He didn't care if he was caught or not now, he had the end in sight, the ending he was waiting for: perfection. Richard would be happy if the last thought he had to ponder over while sitting on death row was the picture of her begging for her life; screaming and finally wheezing out her last breath as he squeezed the life out of her at last.

The bitch. The one that got away. She would be the last.

Last night, he had come dangerously close to losing that chance. Richard knew they would find his home eventually, at least he hoped they did. So he left a surprise, a warning of sorts, because it's so much sweeter when they know you're coming. When she entered the house, though, a moment of panic went through him. If they didn't hear it, didn't run, his perfect ending would be ruined. Thankfully he saw them both emerge from the house seconds before the explosion. She seemed to come to a particularly nasty stop so Richard tempted fate and checked on her; made sure she was still alive; and for one second he debated taking her right there, it would have been so easy, but something stopped him. It was almost too easy, and where would the fun be if she died not by his hands but because of the explosion. No, unacceptable.

So now he watched her get into the standard issue sedan with the older man that seemed to be everywhere with her. He needed to get her alone just long enough to grab her. He would wait patiently until then. Somehow he doubted his pursuers would be leaving until they caught him.

tbc…………………………….