When I'm Gone
AN: Almost over guys….this is the second to the last chapter, but a lot of the good stuff happens here. Last chapter's song was "In a Little While" by Papa Roach.
I want to take a moment to express my deepest thank you to everyone who took the time to review, be it long or short. All are appreciated. Please don't forget to leave authors reviews if you like their story, you have NO idea how great it is to hear that someone appreciates what you have slaved over for weeks or months.
The last chapter will be posted on Tuesday, since theres no new NCIS that day. Enjoy...
Chapter 11: Echo
Kate had resumed a half-day schedule with Jake the Monday after Christmas. He was doing very well in her estimation; they were up to reading entire chapters in books. That afternoon the skies dumped nearly 8 inches of snow on the city and they elected to stay indoors, reading some for fun and watching cartoons for a little bit.
They had both dozed off on the couch, and were sleeping when Gibbs came home, shaking the snow off his coat and boots.
Walking into the living room he nearly laughed aloud at the sight in front of him. Kate was curled into an oversized chair, Jake was sprawled out face down into the couch and both were sleeping soundly.
Silently he headed upstairs and changed into a pair of sweatpants and sweatshirt, putting the suit in the pile to be dry-cleaned. Kate took all his suits in once a week.
Coming back down he made more noise and was not surprised when Kate's head popped up, looking around.
The instant she saw him, her face broke out into a grin and she got up, greeting him with a hug and brief kiss. He could get used to this treatment everyday.
"Hey." She looked at his clothes. "How long have you been home?"
"Not long, you looked so peaceful."
"Mmmm, tired, I guess. Someone has been keeping me up."
"Who would that be?" he asked and wrapped his arms around her waist.
"No clue."
"Well, this week you can catch up on your beauty sleep. Not that you need it."
"Good answer, but why?"
"Well, since we are ahead of schedule on the project, they want to implement this week into all the systems, and complete it by Friday."
"Wow, don't you sound like you know something about computers…."
That earned her a swat on the butt and a look. "Point is, I need to work nights to make sure everything goes as planned. They are doing the installs at night when no one is there."
"Nights?" Her tone was not pleased.
"I'll be home during the day. It's only 10 to 6."
She raised one eyebrow at him and parroted his earlier remark. "Really?"
"I have to be there tomorrow at 10, ending on Thursday night."
"That might not be so bad…."
"Nope…" He looked around and sniffed the air. "I take it no dinner yet?"
"Nope, got…distracted."
He smiled at her. "Pizza from the corner?"
"You read my mind. I'll order, you wake the beast."
"Yes, ma'am."
She shook her head and pulled from his embrace.
The first night was odd for her. Despite only sharing her bed with him for just over a week, she had already gotten used to his warm body being near her. He never really cuddled with her in bed, but she knew he was there, close by.
She woke at every strange sound and slept with her gun at her bedside instead of in the closet, hidden away from children's grasp. Both she and Gibbs had discussed the importance of never, EVER touching their guns if Jake saw them. It had been stressed and practically beaten into his head, so Kate felt safe leaving it out for a few nights.
She was enjoying her days with Gibbs; he typically slept until about 1 in the afternoon and then got up and they either went out or found stuff to do around the house. For two days the system worked great, and Kate had seen a good portion of New York City in the winter.
By Thursday she was ready for him to be home at night; it felt so empty without him. Maybe being separated from Jake wasn't Kate's only problem when they eventually returned to DC. Gibbs could become a bigger one. They had started something special here, something she didn't want to give up. Then again, she loved her job and the people she worked with…even Tony.
The same old questions about their working status at NCIS and returning to "real life" started floating through her head. If they ever had real life back again.
Lying in bed she decided as she drifted off that they would have to talk about this tomorrow, like it or not. She wanted some answers before it became an issue; it would ease her mind.
She was deep in sleep when a strange noise invaded and brought her to consciousness. Blinking she looked at the clock…3:30 am, maybe it was Gibbs getting in early. He had mentioned it was a possibility since it was the last night and all had gone well.
Staying still she focused on the noise and in an instant realized it was NOT Gibbs. There were two people for sure, and they had come in through the back door, not the garage door.
Quietly she got out of bed and grabbed her gun off the bedside table. She tiptoed into the hallway and stood silently near the top of the stairs, she could hear them moving in the kitchen now, their rubber boots making a slight squeaking noise on the tile. It didn't sound like Gibbs, which convinced her it wasn't him.
Kate walked across the hallway and entered Jake's room, waking him roughly and with a hand over his mouth. The little boy woke with a start, giving her a frightened expression.
"Kate?" No Momma this time.
She put one finger over her lips. "Shhhh…remember what I taught you if something bad happened?"
"Yeah…"
"Do it right now, Jake."
He seemed to freeze a moment, then she prodded him and he nodded before moving into his closet, removing the panel and crawling inside. She quickly replaced the panel and covered the area with toys, books and a hamper; for all Kate knew this was just a robbery, but she wasn't about to take that chance.
Moving back into the hall, she came to the stairs again and was surprised not to hear anything. She stood silent again, straining to hear any movement, focused down the stairs.
She was shocked when noise came from her bedroom.
Turning her head she came face to face with one of the intruders, before she could even pull her gun up he had one pointed at her head – silencer and all. He was dressed in all black with a black baseball cap no attempt at all to hide his face. It was Mason.
"DON'T scream and hand it over."
She did as instructed and he threw her gun into the office. She watched it slide under the desk.
"Where is he?"
She swallowed roughly; her throat was dry. "Who?"
The man's eyes squinted at her and he punched her hard across the jaw with his left hand, leaving the gun pointed at her. Kate resisted showing any kind of reaction, and after turning her head back, she spit out blood on the floor by his shoe before staring at him dead on.
She would not tell him anything, even if it meant her life.
"Stupid bitch," he hissed and grabbed her by her hair, yanking her head back violently.
She still didn't make a sound.
"Where is your 'husband'?" He tugged a little harder.
"He went out to get something for me, but he'll be right back. You better hope you're not here when he does."
That's when his accomplice came out of her bedroom and headed directly to Jake's, giving her a sadistic grin as he went by.
"Get what for you?"
"Cold medication."
He closed the gap between them and looked at her closely. "You don't look sick, Agent Todd."
The use of her given name startled her, and she must have shown it because he gave her a self-satisfied smirk.
He turned his attention away from her and toward Jake's bedroom, with an annoyed expression on his face. She breathed a sigh of relief; they hadn't found him yet.
"Where is the boy?"
She stayed silent and he dug the end of his gun into her abdomen.
"Once more, where is he?"
She merely gave him a nasty look.
He grabbed her around the throat and threw her against the wall, pressing hard into her trachea. Kate felt a rush of air escape her, and he pressed a little harder, completely cutting off her oxygen flow.
In a matter of seconds she was starting to struggle for air, bringing her hands up to claw at his in an attempt for release. He did nothing but smile. She could sense blackness in her peripheral vision, and started to fight a little harder, now going for his face and eyes while she kicked out.
His arms, however, were slightly longer than hers and he avoided her attempts easily. By then the other man had joined in and grasped her hands in his, stopping her.
She knew she had run out of air when her lungs starting burning painfully. It was then that he let her go and leaned his lips into her ear, whispering.
"I can do this all night, Agent. Can you?"
Still struggling to bring much needed oxygen into her lungs, Kate brought one knee up and, taking advantage of the fact he thought she was incapacitated, made contact with his nuts. Both men were so surprised by her actions they paused long enough to allow her to run toward her bedroom.
She never made it to her intended target: her cell phone.
Instead she was knocked down from behind, and violently turned onto her back. She tried to scream, but her throat was raw from being choked and she barely managed a squeak.
The man she recognized straddled her body and instructed his accomplice to tear the place apart looking for Jake, knowing she must have hid him.
Kate fought under his weight, trying to inch toward the night table, where the phone rested. His weight was too much for her though and he stilled her by pinning both arms down above her head with one large hand around her smaller wrists.
He kept the gun trained on her side.
"We will find him, Agent know that. I don't screw up twice. Gibbs will come home to a bloodbath and I'm sure he will take it very hard."
He gave her a feral grin and she felt it before hearing the quiet ping of the silencer.
The pain started as a pinprick in her side but quickly spread through her abdomen; it felt like fire was consuming her from the inside out.
He had shot her in the stomach.
Shit.
The man stood up and looked down at her. She couldn't do anything; the pain was unbearable. Both her hands flew down to the area and pressed lightly on the wound, trying to keep her life from bleeding onto the tan carpet. It wasn't helping though, and she could feel the blood seeping slowly through her fingers.
"Stomach wounds are very painful, and can take up to twenty minutes to kill you. But I'm sure you know that." He smirked again. "Goodbye, Agent Todd. It was nice meeting you."
She watched as he left the room, trying to raise her head, but the action sent acute throbbing through her abdomen. Taking a different tack, she tilted her head slightly back against the carpet where it wasn't as painful. She could see the edge of her phone; it was slightly above her, more than an arms-length away.
This was going to hurt, but she didn't have a choice. She had to do something before she couldn't do anything.
Biting her lip hard, Kate stretched her right arm up, reaching despite the sudden nausea that overcame her. She pulled her arm back and took a deep breath to hold off a faint feeling. With each movement, she could feel the blood increase its stream, starting a puddle at her lower back.
The blood felt warm, even as she started to feel cold inside; she was practically shivering. She had to hurry since everything was getting dark.
Gritting her teeth one more time, she reached again this time coming into contact with the edge of the table, and she gripped onto it despite the blinding pain. Sliding her hand across, she found the phone and knocked it down next to her head.
Kate was suddenly tired, very tired, and she wanted nothing more than to close her eyes. But she knew if she did she wouldn't wake back up. Breathing through her nose she could hear the men downstairs opening doors – still looking for Jake.
Her eyes floated closed for a second before she snapped them back open.
Phone, Kate. Call someone.
She reached up with one hand, keeping the other firmly pressed against the now seeping wound. It was getting worse; Kate felt dizzy, short of breath and freezing and moving her arm was becoming increasingly difficult. But she managed to grab the phone and flip it open.
All the numbers looked…jumbled.
Going by memory she dialed the easiest number she knew and then dropped the phone to the ground. The darkness had caught up with her and Kate gave into it this time, hoping that at the very least Jake would make it out alive. As she drifted off, Kate heard a voice calling through the phone.
"911, what's your emergency?"
She was unable to respond. Death was knocking.
tbc…………………………Tuesday, hang onto then.
