………………………….
McGee, Gibbs, Tony and Danny drove as fast as they could to Boston but it would take a few hours. They were halfway there when Gibbs got a phone call. It was the Boston police who said they hadn't found anyone in the house but the house was in a beg mess. As far as they knew the house was own by the charity according to official records. Gibbs thanked them for the information but he wasn't so happy about telling the others what they said.
"So who was it?" Tony asked.
"The Boston police. No one was in the house and the charity does own the house. I suspect someone who works in the charity did a good cover up the last year and a half. If we find that person then we'll find them." Gibbs said hopeful.
"So we're going to New York then?" Daniel asked.
"No, we're still headed to Boston…Others can check out the charity…I'm going to call them right away." Gibbs said. He was glad he could make another call. He hated being stuck in an investigation.
Everyone anxiously awaited the outcome of his call.
"McGee, stop at the nearest gas station. We need to fill up with some gas and food." Daniel asked him.
"We can't stop now." Tony said.
"Either we stop on the freeway or at a gas station." Daniel said looking at the meter.
"We don't need to stop now." Tony said again. Tony and Daniel sat in the backseat together. The looks they shared didn't seem so pleasant. McGee and Gibbs sat in the front and tried to ignore them because they hoped they would come to their senses.
"We can make a quick stop. You know we won't get there with the amount of gas we have now." Daniel said to Tony.
"We can stop when we're a little closer to Boston or even in Boston. I don't care what you do when we're in Boston but until we're there we shouldn't waste time!" Tony said a bit angry.
"You're accusing me of wasting time…I want to get there as soon as possible too but I'm being realistic…Something you're not…Stop acting like an agent and act like a real worried husband!" Daniel said to him quite upset.
"So you think I'm not worried and doesn't care…Wait a minute!" Tony said angry and the tension between them was very big.
"Now you two stop it. We're going to find them and it doesn't help if you two are arguing. McGee is doing a better job than you two and I only need helpful people in the car." Gibbs yelled at them while he was talking on the phone. He had heard every single word of what they had said because they were so loud. He was in a middle of a phone call and they didn't care. He was so angry at them and he couldn't help but to yell at them in a very harsh way.
They became quiet and McGee started to look for a sign for a gas station.
A few minutes went by and Gibbs' call finished.
"The New York police are investigating the charity. They'll get the insider. Meanwhile some of the staff is staying late to search through the archives with the police and so far they've found 2 million dollars have gone to a housing project in Boston but it can be a lot more. The house cost 500,000 dollars and the other payments went to renovations of it according to the papers they've found but that can be just a label for something else. The strange part is that a deed on a Boston warehouse also showed up in the Boston house. A copy of the same deed was found in the charity's office. The money has been used to buy a warehouse. The charity doesn't own warehouses. The man who has the office where all of this information was found in has gone missing. It seems he left his job in a hurry this afternoon." Gibbs explained to them.
"They found out this in just a few hours? Why now and not before?" Daniel asked.
"Things go fast with phones, the internet and the right leads. Don't they McGee?" Gibbs said but he knew he didn't need to get his statement validated by him but asked McGee just to get Daniel and Tony to focus. Gibbs didn't want them fight again.
"Yes, boss…" McGee said while he slowly drove in to a gas station.
"How far away from Boston are we now?" Tony asked.
"About an hour." McGee answered.
………………….Outside the truck………………
"Now you're going into a room. Smile when you enter it." One of the men said. There were five men surrounding them and it made it virtually impossible for them to escape. Their plan didn't work. The two women were escorted into the room and then door shut.
"It's very cold in here. Hard to breathe too." Diana said to Kate.
"It's around freezing point. They want us to die a slow and painful death even though with the low air supply it may go quick." Kate stated.
"Then we can at least tell each other how they proposed to us…" Diana said to Kate.
Then they heard the door open again.
"We have some unfinished business. Come with me."
………………………………
The computer had been on during the whole ride but now everyone was eating at the restaurant near the gas station. They just finished and Daniel was paying their bill while Tony was at the restroom and the others were waiting for them. Gibbs phone then rang. He talked quickly and McGee ran back to the car. Tony and Daniel saw that and hurried to Gibbs to ask what was happening. Gibbs explained to them while they quickly hurried to the car.
"They aren't there now but the Boston police sent me a copy of the last couple of minutes. We better look at it." McGee said to them when they entered the vehicle.
Everyone was glad to see them but still they didn't now if it was old which meant they could be dead. Then McGee put on the live video on the screen but it was black once again. Their car drove away. They weren't far from the outskirts of Boston when they heard a door open. It came from the computer. Just as shocked as they were when they saw the first clip as shocked they were when they saw Kate and Diana sitting there not looking like they were in a bad condition or worried that they would die soon.
"Why are they talking when they are using up more oxygen that way?" Daniel asked frustrated.
"So they don't go crazy…They want to be calm and not hyperventilate." Tony quickly answered. It was something they all had learned through their training.
…………..Back in the warehouse……..
"I'll start then…I am a modest person but I always thought Daniel would ignore that when he proposed to me. He likes extravagant things when it comes to something special. Do you want to hear the long version or short one? I'm always very detailed when I usually tell stories." Diana asked her.
"Long one I guess."
"I'll try to not to make it too long…I had promised to not work pass 5 pm anymore but it turned out to a hard promise to keep. We've talked for a while about commitment and having children and what changes we would have to do in our lives if we wanted our relationship to keep on working. Daniel was so good in coming up ways how we could juggle work, family and friends and still be happy. He had only one job and I had three which meant more sacrificing from my part than his. Daniel always said that I'm the boss in every job I have so it shouldn't be so hard for me to do the right thing. Still I came home around 7 pm that day and I was both mad at him and myself for that. I want to marry him and can't even get myself to say no to working passed five and committing to our relationship. I felt we would have an argument when I came home so I went straight to our bedroom, shut the door hard, getting changed without saying a word to him." Diana said before taking a break. It was getting a bit hard talking so much.
"Are you ok?" Kate asked.
"I'm fine, you?"
"Fine considering everything…Which date was it?"
"January 10th. Five months before we got married…Anyway Daniel didn't understand why I was so upset and it destroyed the perfect mood he obviously was in. I didn't notice his happy mood when he walked into our room. He asked me what was wrong and I said everything and I don't want to talk about because I don't want to argue. I told him I was going for a walk but he wanted me stay at home and tell him what was wrong." Diana continued.
"Sometimes Tony does that too and afterwards I'm always glad he does. I wish I could tell that to him just one more time." Kate said sadly.
"They know how much we love them. I hope that knowledge will help them move on." Diana said before coughing a few times.
"You don't have to finish if you feel very sick." Kate said to her hating to see how hard it was for her to tell her story.
"I'll talk until I have no air in my lungs…He sat there next to me but I had a hard time trying to come up with the right words explaining how hard it is to work a lot less. Somehow I thought the day I was really committed in a relationship things would work smoothly almost automatically but I was so far from the truth. That moment I knew a great relationship is hard work but when the right man sits next to you when you're hurting then you know it is worth it. Before I could say anything he left the room and I felt so bad for failing. I didn't stop him. I lied down on our bed and looked at the ceiling. Daniel came back after a while and urged me to tell him again what was wrong. That I did. Afterwards he handed me a little jewellery box. It had a necklace in it. I wondered what I had done to deserve it and he said I let my guard down and let him in which had been the best thing in his life. Then we walked out to the kitchen and I saw it filled with lit candles and a bouquet of roses. When I looked at them amazed he bent down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I came late, was upset and still he managed to propose to me in the best way…He had prepared a wonderful speech which he gave me framed as my wedding present…If we do get out of here you have to visit us so I can show it to you…When he proposed I was so happy because he did it in a way he knew I would love…The necklace was my engagement ring until we had picked out one together and I was so surprised when he said that. He knew I wanted us to pick one out together which I hadn't told him. Later I found out he had asked my sisters and friends everything about how I wanted my proposal to be. He had planned a few things but when I came home late he had to change his plans. A late horse carriage ride in Central Park was the only thing we could do that night but a few days later he surprised me with an engagement party. Most of them who came had no idea it was an engagement party. They thought it was an ordinary party. So we both got what we wanted. He got his big celebration and I got my modest proposal...Things went quite quickly after that and here I am today…" Diana finished.
"Great story…So…This is my story…" Kate said thinking about where she would start.
"Come closer…We'll get warmer that way." Diana suggested and they both moved closer to each other.
………………..In the car…………
"That was a great proposal…I actually can't wait to hear how you proposed to Caitlin." Daniel said to him.
"Neither can I…It will be nice to hear her talk about." Tony answered. Everyone in the car had become a bit emotional but mostly Tony and Danny.
McGee kept driving but tried to pay attention to what the women said too.
………………..
"He had given me or rather us as a Christmas present a two day stay at a hotel not far from where we live. The very next day we had to be there. When I entered the room it was filled with roses, champagne and balloons. I thought we had come to the wrong room but then Tony said I should read what was on the balloons. I read them and then I looked at Tony. They said will you marry me and Tony then said the same thing. He gave me a ring and I was so shocked because everything felt so right and surreal at the same time. Tony looked at me and I suddenly remembered I hadn't said a word. I said yes and then he hugged me and carried me to the bed. I thought the beautiful hotel room was enough but he had bigger plans and that's why I got shocked. Six months later we got married…I'm sorry if it was short but I'm not as skilled storyteller as you are." Kate explained to her.
"I loved it. Thanks Caitlin for everything. I know we haven't known each other for a long time but I love you as much as I love my other friends. I wanted to say that before I become unconscious." Diana told her.
"I love you too…Are you feeling that much shortness of breath?" Kate asked.
"I am…At least that means you'll have more air in case they are looking for us."
"They are…Don't believe them…NCIS isn't easily fooled as they said. They went first to the wrong building but that doesn't mean they won't find the right one." Kate said now feeling she also had extremely difficult to breathe. They both lay down on the floor. Diana took her hand.
"They looked sincere when they said they would reveal the right address when we died…" Diana said before they both closed their eyes.
…………………………..In the car………………..
"How far away are we? They can't die!" Tony yelled.
"I don't know. I'm trying to follow the monitor. We'll get there in time." McGee said to him.
"We know it is live now…They said so…Kate and Diana said so…Just to remember to run and search for every locked room. Everyone has to have a gun so we can shoot every lock." Gibbs told them. He hoped everyone remembered these easy instructions and hopefully they wouldn't be too late.
"Why don't you call the paramedics?" McGee suggested.
"We need back up too so hopefully the Boston police are already there making sure it is safe for everyone to search the building." Gibbs said while dialling on his phone.
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