Disclaimer: Same as in chapter one, except I'm even more broke now than I was then, due to my formal on friday. Yayness!

Author's note: Thanks to those who reviwed! And to all those who picked up on 'Angie', SORRY! I'm not very good at checking over my work. (Ask my english teacher) As I said before, this was originally a fic for another show (there was a character called Angie) but then I changed my mind and had to go back and change the names over for a bit.

And thanks to dinozzofan who picked up Pete and Biggs (I clearly can't spell) in this one - you're a legend! If anyone feels like being a beta for me...

Hmmm, that's all!

THEN – SIX YEARS AGO

Gibbs walked into the factory, looking like he hadn't slept in days, or else he had a really bad hangover. Tony figured it was most likely the first option, as he had never known Gibbs as one to drink much. He guessed that he had spent the night arguing with a magistrate over a search warrant.

"Morning Boss," he said, smiling as he finished making his coffee.

Gibbs looked at him blankly, before focussing on the coffee in his hand. He walked over and took it, before smiling back. "Morning Dinozzo," he replied, watching amusedly as Tony walked away in shock.

"Where the hell's Todd?" called Gibbs, when he finally registered that he as one agent short.

Tony shrugged. "Not in yet Boss."

"Kate's never late," said McGee, looking up from his computer.

"Wow Probie, you should be some sort of detective," said Tony sarcastically. He turned to Gibbs. "Give her a break Gibbs. She's had a rough few days."

"Don't you think Ducky might have a little more to worry about?" thundered Gibbs, as he stormed upstairs to see Abby.

Tony glanced at McGee, who watched him carefully.

"Maybe you should call her," he suggested, before quickly going back to his work before Tony could start teasing him.

Tony nodded, and picked up the phone, quickly dialling Kate's home phone, the number of which he had memorised, not that he would ever tell Kate that. When there was no answer, he tried Kate's mobile.

"Off…" he said, more to himself.

"What was that?" asked Gibbs as he walked past, a fresh cup of coffee in his hand.

"Oh, Kate's mobile's off, that's all."
Gibbs raised his eyebrows. "It's never off…"

Tony nodded. "I'm going around to her place, just to check it out. Call me if she turns up here will you?"

Gibbs shook his head, and put down his coffee. "I'm coming with you."

Tony nodded, and quickly ordered McGee to hold fort.

They quickly left headquarters, and Gibbs began to speed towards Kate's place.

"You know, if someone pulls us over for speeding, it'll just take longer to get there," said Tony, as he held onto he dashboard tightly.

Gibbs grunted, but slowed down slightly so that he was just above the limit.

Tony smiled, and released his grip slightly. "She'll be right," he said, more to himself than to Gibbs.

Gibbs nodded, concentrating on his driving. "She'll be out for a jog or something, or at the gym, beating the hell out of a bag."

"Yeah, I think she feels guilty for what happened," said Tony. "She shouldn't though, there was nothing she could've done."

Gibbs didn't reply, instead he was pulling up next to Kate's apartment.

They walked up to her level, neither of them talking. Gibbs knocked lightly, and waited. They looked at each other, expressionless.

Tony glanced towards the door, and Gibbs nodded, before suddenly holding up a hand. "Wait, I've got a key," he said.

Tony raised his eyebrows. He'd been ready to knock the door down, so to speak, but it appeared that Gibbs and Kate were closer than he thought. "I've got your front door key too," grunted Gibbs, and he left Tony speechless as he opened the door.

They moved quickly through the house, watching for signs of life.

"Everything's gone," noted Gibbs, looking into all the rooms, which were empty of any personal items.

Tony nodded in agreement.

"She must have just packed up and left," he said, walking through from the lounge room to the kitchen.

"Gibbs!" he called urgently, after catching sight of a small envelope left on the bench.

Gibbs' head snapped up, and he ran towards the kitchen.

"What is it?" he called.

Tony held out the envelope, and looked down sadly.

Gibbs took it, and read Kate's neat handwriting on the front: 'Gibbs'.

He opened it carefully, and read the first few lines, before throwing it down in anger. Tony picked it up, and read it out loud.

'Gibbs,' it read. 'By the time you have received this, I will be far away, where you can't reach me. But I want you to know that I am safe.'

Tony paused and looked at Gibbs. "She's really gone," he said.

Gibbs nodded, picking up his phone to call McGee.

Tony held up his hand, and took the phone away, before continuing to read. He wanted Gibbs to hear the whole thing, just in case…

'I wish I could have said goodbye to you, and thanked you for everything that you've ever done for me. But I knew that if I saw you, then I wouldn't be able to go through with this. And I need to, more than anything. I can't stay with NCIS anymore.'

There was a small gap, where Kate had obviously thought about what to write.

'I know you probably won't listen to this, but I'll write it anyway. Please don't try to track me down. I don't want to be found, ever. One day, I might come back, when I'm ready, but not now. I've met this really great guy, Jake, and we're going away from here. Away from everything that ever went wrong… Just remember, I love you guys so much, Gibbs, and tell Ducky I'm sorry about the case-'

"I knew she felt guilty," cut in Gibbs.

'It was my fault, I know. Say goodbye to everyone for me – I'll never forget you guys. Love forever, Kate.'

Tony neatly folded the note, and tucked it inside the envelope.

"We have to find her," he said, tears threatening to spill over, not that he would let Gibbs see that.

Gibbs shook his head. "She doesn't want to be found. Even if we did find her, she'll probably just run again."

Tony paused. Gibbs was right. But he couldn't face loosing his best friend.

"We can't tell Abby yet," he said, taking the note and tucking it in his pocket. "She needs to concentrate on the evidence, or we won't get a warrant, and we won't find Ducky. And then there'll be two gone."

Tony nodded in agreement. "Let's go tell McGee," he said, slowly walking back towards the car.

Lie to me

I promise I'll believe

Lie to me

But please don't leave

NOW

"What the fuck are you doing here?" asked Tony, as he opened the door wider to see Kate properly. He couldn't see Lily however, as she was hidden by Kate.

Kate continued looking at her feet. She knew it had been a bad idea to come.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, turning suddenly and moving quickly towards her car. But Lily, who wasn't as fast, remained on the porch. Tony's eyes grew as he saw the small girl standing there.

"Who's this?" he asked, motioning towards Lily.

Kate turned, and saw that Lily was left standing alone.

"This is Lily," she said though tears. "My daughter."

Kate held out her hand to Lily, expecting her to take it. But Lily shook her head. "I don't want to go," she said quietly. "I'm tired of running away." She turned to Tony. "My mom's in trouble," she said seriously. "And she said you can help."

All of Tony's anger faded immediately, as he listened to Lily. She was so much like Kate, not only in looks.

He smiled, and stepped outside. "Do you wanna stay the night?" he asked, looking directly at Kate, ho wouldn't meet his eyes.

She nodded briefly, and glanced up, expecting to see Tony glaring at her, eyes full of hate. But instead she saw Tony smiling, just like he always used to.

She smiled back slightly. "I've missed you," she whispered, as Tony pulled her into a tight hug.

Early the next morning, Kate woke to the smell of breakfast cooking, wafting from the kitchen. She sat up, and realised that the bed was empty, apart from herself obviously, and began to search the room frantically, before realising that she could hear laughter coming from the kitchen, from Tony and from Lily.

Kate relaxed, and lay back down in bed. She thought back to the night before. Tony had asked a few questions, but she had brushed him off, telling him that she would fill him in on the details later. But she knew that she had to tell him soon, rather than later, after all, she was staying in his house.

Tony had offered her the spare room for as long as she needed it, and they had gone to sleep without much other talking. Kate had told herself that she would explain everything to Tony the next day, but as she lay in bed, she was rapidly changing her mind.

"Mommy!" came Lily's voice up the corridor, as she ran towards the spare room. Kate could hear two sets of footsteps, and figured that Tony was chasing Lily.

'Great,' she thought. 'Just what I need, Dinozzo's influence on her.'

The door burst open, and Lily jumped on the bed and dove under the covers, where she hid, giggling, from Tony, who was pretending to look for her, although it was obvious to all three where she was.

Kate smiled and joined in the game, until Lily suddenly remembered their 'secret' breakfast. A look of horror crossed Tony's face. "I knew I forgot something," he said, chasing Lily back down the hall.

Kate laughed, and followed them a few minutes later into the kitchen, where she could see a few blackened pancakes lying next to the stove.

"I can see your cooking's improved," she said, as Tony turned around, noticing her entrance.

He nodded. "I reckon I'll dump these, and then cook the rest, yeah?"

Kate smiled. She knew he was purposely avoiding any 'real' conversation with her, instead just making small talk.

"Tony," she started, before she lost her nerve.

"Mmm?" replied Tony, not looking up from the stove.

"Can I talk to you later, about, you know, stuff?" she asked nervously.

Tony nodded, smiling to himself. Tony: one, Kate: nil.

"Yeah, we'll eat these, and then I've got a few videos Lily can watch."

Kate nodded, and began pulling out jam and honey for breakfast, with directions from Tony.

They ate their pancakes, and Tony pulled out a few videos for Lily to choose from.

"Ok, we've got Hi-5, Bob the builder, and The Wiggles," he said, proudly displaying his collection.

Kate looked at him, eyebrows raised. "I never knew you had other interests but porn," she said.

Tony rolled his eyes, and mouthed back that he'd tell her later. Kate nodded, not convinced.

"Hi-5 please," said Lily, pointing at the video.

Tony grinned and stuck it in the machine, and then led Kate into the kitchen, where they could have some privacy.

Kate sat down at the table, and Tony handed her a mug of coffee, and positioned a chair next to her.

He waited for Kate to begin, and when she didn't, he decided to ask his own questions.

"I'm not going to pretend I'm not angry," he began, sipping his own coffee, "Because I am. You left us, with no explanation." He held up a hand to stop Kate's protests. "But I know you Katie, or at least I thought I did. And you don't do stuff like that without a bloody good reason. Something must have really gone wrong, and you can tell me about it, I promise I won't tell anyone"

Kate nodded; she knew she could trust Tony.

Tony's voice softened. "I just want to know why you left us. You hurt us Kate," he said, taking Kate's shaking hand, and holding it still. "It's ok."

Kate took a deep breath, and bit her lip. She knew there were scars there, and all over her cheek, and upper forehead. Most of them were invisible, but not to her. And not to Tony either.

"What happened there?" he asked gently, touching a healed cut near Kate's jaw.

Kate opened her mouth, to explain, but instead of words, she began to cry. "I'm so sorry, for everything," she managed, allowing herself to be hugged gently by Tony.

She only flinched slightly, which didn't go unnoticed by Tony, but he didn't mention it, and Kate didn't think he'd noticed. Tony didn't let go, and only briefly did her allow the realisation that he was hugging Kate Todd pass through his mind.

"You remember the last case we were working on," she began, watching Tony intently.

He nodded, showing that he was listening and interested.

"How Ducky went missing, when I was on detail. How he died, because of me…" She trailed off, and Tony didn't need to hear the rest. "He didn't die, you know," he interrupted, watching Kate carefully as a shocked expression came over her face. "That night," continued Kate, ignoring Tony's comment "I went out, to some pub, and I met this guy, called-"

"Jake," filled in Tony.

Kate nodded. "At the time, I thought he was great. I was really upset about what had happened, and he cheered me up, and then asked me to go away with him, and marry him."

Tony's eyes widened, although he didn't say anything.

"It's stupid, I can see it now. But at the time, I had to get away. I knew that if I went back to work, the same thing would happen again, and all the bad stuff would get worse and worse, until someone ended up dead. And I couldn't handle that."

Tony nodded, taking Kate's hand even tighter. She smiled, and kept talking.

"So we left. I changed my name, and packed up all my stuff."

"Did you do it through witness protection?" Tony asked suddenly.

Kate nodded. "How did you know?"

Tony shrugged. "We figured you must have. We couldn't find any records of you anywhere. No name changes, nothing. You'd completely disappeared." He paused, and looked at her sharply. "You weren't really in danger, were you?"

Kate shook her head. "No, but they didn't question anything I said. I only had to mention my Secret Service and NCIS backgrounds, and they processed everything on the spot. I resigned from the force that morning, and we arrived in Florida that night. I was Mrs Williams two days later."

Tony tried to hide his shock. Kate had never been so impulsive, he thought. Kate stole a look at Tony, not surprised at his shock. Even now, Kate couldn't believe what she had done.

"We decided to travel for a bit, but I couldn't apply for a new passport under my name, because I figured you lot would be watching that."

Tony nodded, smiling. They had carefully gone through all new passport applications, checking out anyone who even remotely resembled Kate in appearance. Needless to say, they hadn't had any luck.

"What did you do instead? You couldn't have stayed in Florida too long, you would've been too scared."

Kate grinned. "Yeah, I was for awhile. But no, we decided to go around America. I've got photos…" she added, smiling.

Tony laughed. "Get on with the story," he said.

"Yeah, well after about six, seven months, we reached Colorado, and I realised I was pregnant."

"With Lily?" asked Tony.

Kate nodded, rolling her eyes. "We decided to stay there for a few months." She grinned. "We stayed there for four and a half years."

"Why'd you leave?" asked Tony.

Kate looked down, biting her lip.

"C'mon Katie," urged Tony. "I won't judge you, you know that."

"Jake lost his job," said Kate quietly. "He started drinking, and getting abusive. I decided it was time for a change, and we moved to Los Angeles. Jake got a job really quickly but I, I don't know what he did," she said, almost apologetically.

"That's ok, it was a good idea to leave. Damn brave really." Kate smiled, and fiddled with a strand of hair that had fallen across her cheek.

"In Los Angeles, it just got worse. He, he hit me Tony," said Kate, as she began to cry, placing her head in her hands.

Tony moved towards her, and hugged her close. "I'm going to kill the bastard," he muttered, more to himself than to Kate. But she heard him, and smiled slightly.

"The one night, he came home and shoved a bunch of files in my face, telling me to read them. I didn't realise what they were, until he told me."

Kate looked up. "They were government files Tony, my files. Jake found out that I was an agent."

Tony pulled away slightly. "What do you mean, he found out you were a cop?"

Kate shrugged. "When we first met, I didn't tell him what I did. It's the quickest was to turn a guy off, trust me. I guess I never told him."

Tony laughed, shaking his head. "You're a clever girl Kate."

"Not that clever, to marry someone who ends up trying to kill you."

"Kill you?" asked Tony, shocked. "What do you mean?"

"Those files Jake had, someone had given them to him so that he could knock me off." She paused. "Tony, Jake was a hitman."

There was silence, as Tony let this sink in.

"So this guy's after you?" he asked.

Kate nodded. "Lil and I have been driving for nearly six months, never staying in one place more than a day. We've had a few close encounters, but mainly we've been ok." She paused. "I couldn't keep running Tony, I just had to stop. I'm so tired…"

Tony nodded, and let Kate fall back into his arms. "You're safe here," he whispered, gently stroking her hair.

Later that afternoon, Kate wandered into the living room, where Tony was watching a video with Lily. He was good with her, she decided, sitting down on the couch next to Tony.

"I forgot to ask you something before," said Kate, taking Tony's attention away from the TV, which was more difficult than Kate expected, considering they were watching Bob the Builder.

"Mmm?" replied Tony, eyes still glued to the screen.

"Why've you got kids videos?" she asked, hitting Tony on the arm to get his attention.

Tony turned, and looked at her sadly. He pointed to the kitchen, and they both stood silently, not disturbing Lily.

They were seated at the kitchen table, and Tony handed Kate a photo of a small girl, who looked about two.

"My daughter," said Tony simply.

Kate nodded, not having to ask.

"She beautiful," she said. "What was her name?"

Tony smiled slightly. "Caitlyn," he replied, looking at the photo fondly.

Kate smiled, and took Tony's hand.

"You and…?" she asked, a questioning look on her face.

"Abby."

Kate didn't bother hiding her shock, and Tony smiled slightly.

"It sounds terrible, but she was a mistake," he continued, tucking the photo back into his pocket. "After you left, we were both upset. One thing led to another, I guess…"

Kate smiled. "Where's Abby now?" she asked, glancing around the kitchen.

Tony sighed. "She died, Kate. She went to the supermarket to buy something, some milk I think."

He watched Kate carefully. "She never came home. A drunk driver, she died in hospital that night."

Kate pulled away, tears coming to her eyes.

"She was devastated when you left. But she said that you were her best friends. She knew you'd come back."

If a great wave should fall

Fall upon us all

I know there's someone out there

Who can bring me back to you

THEN – SIX YEARS AGO

Tony held Abby's hand tightly, and looked desperately at Gibbs as he entered the room, not bothering to stop himself from crying.

"Tony," said Abby weakly, trying to smile from underneath the layers of tubes.

"Yeah Abs," said Tony, moving closer to the bed.

Abby held out her free hand to Tony, motioning for him to look at it.

Tony took her hand, and found a worn friendship bracelet inside it.

"Give this to Kate," she said as her eyes closed.

"You know she's gone Abby," said Gibbs, as Tony elbowed him sharply.

Abby nodded. "She'll come back. You can find her for me. Just give this to her. She was my best friend."

Tony nodded, and stuck the bracelet in his pocket, sitting back down next to Gibbs. They were in for a rough night, he knew. Chances were that Abby wouldn't make it.

Holding my last breath

Safe inside myself

All my thoughts of you

Sweet raptured light

It ends here tonight

NOW

Tony stood, and took something from a drawer. "She wanted me to give this to you." He held out the bracelet, and Kate took it slowly.

"This was mine," she said, putting it on. "I threw it out after we had a fight one time, she must have saved it," She said through tears.

Tony nodded, and put his arm around Kate. "She loved you," he said, stroking her hair. "We all did."

"What happened with Caitlyn?" asked Kate, several minutes later, after she had composed herself.

Tony looked up.

"After you left, we were lonely, and everyone was falling apart. Ducky was the same, and Gibbs was grumpier than ever. And Probie was just weird…"

Kate laughed, rolling her eyes.

Tony grinned, and continued talking. "We'd been out drinking one night, and one thing lead to another."

Tony sighed. "Abby found out she was pregnant, and we decided to get married; try and be a family."

Kate raised her eyebrows, but didn't say anything, knowing that it would sound kind of rich, coming from her.

"How did Caitlyn die?"

Tony bowed his head slightly.

"She was with Abby, in the crash. She died at the scene."

Kate reached out and took Tony's hand, which was trembling.

"I'm so sorry Tony, if I'd known…"

Tony shrugged. "After that, I fell apart for a while. I nearly lost my job. But I couldn't move, you know…" he trailed off, looking at the table sadly.

Kate nodded.

"What about Gibbs?" she asked.

Tony tried to smile. "He married."

"Oh," said Kate.

"And divorced."

Kate grinned. "Do you still see him?"

Tony nodded. "Yeah, he's still the Boss."

"You're still NCIS?" asked Kate incredulously.

Tony nodded. "I just can't keep away from the place."

They were interrupted by a small figure, standing in the door to the kitchen.

"Mommy?" asked Lily.

Kate glanced at Tony. If she'd known about his past, what he'd been through, she would never have brought Lily here. But she found he was smiling, and so she smiled also.

"Yeah Lil?"

"The video finished." She glanced at Tony, who smiled at her.

"You wanna go out somewhere?" he asked.

Lily nodded, and Kate turned to him hesitantly.

"Tony, what about…"

Tony winked. "It'll be ok. I'll protect you both." He flexed his muscles, and Lily giggled.

"Please Mom?" she said excitedly, and Kate nodded.

"I guess," she said, and then smiled. "Haven't been out for a while, have we Lil?"

Little darling

I feel the ice is slowly melting

Little darling

It feels like years since it's been clear

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun

And I say it's all right

THEN – ONE MONTH AGO

Lily laughed as Kate chased her around the park, before finally catching her and holding her tightly so that she couldn't get away

"My turn, my turn!" she cried, as Kate let her go, and began to jog away slowly. Lily closed her eyes, and counted to ten. She could count easily, all the way to one hundred, like she had been practising the night before with Kate.

"Coming!" she yelled excitedly, uncovering her eyes.

Lily looked around the small park, searching for her mother.

"Mom?" she called uncertainly, when she couldn't see her anywhere. "Mommy?"

Lily jumped as a hand covered her mouth from behind, before a familiar arm slipped around her shoulders.

"Shh…" whispered Kate, uncovering Lily's mouth.

"What's wrong Mommy?" whispered Lily, tightly holding her mother's hand as thy crept to their nearby car.

"There's a bad man in the park," whispered back Kate, quickly unlocking the car, and pushing Lily into the cavity between the back and front seats.

"Stay there, and be very quiet," whispered Kate, locking the doors.

Kate opened the front door, when she saw one of Jake's friends moving towards the car. "Shit," she whispered to herself. She quickly started the engine, before seeing the glint of metal in Paul's hand. There were guns.

Kate changed her mind, and her hand slipped quickly down into the space next to the door. She pulled out her small handgun, and quickly took aim at Paul.

She hit him in one shot, and then quickly took off before any more of Jake's mates could appear.

Lily quietly stuck her head up from the backseat, hearing the shot.

"Mommy?" she asked quietly, crying softly.

Kate turned back to her little girl, and opened her arms.

"Come here baby," she whispered, as Lily crawled through, and sat with Kate, as they sped away yet again.

Gentle, gentle

Sing to your child

Your companion for such a long, long time

Beneath your heart

Her heart beats strong

Life of your life

Is safe in your arms

to be continued... dum dum dum