Present Day

Los Angeles

"Yes….yes…fine. Thank you, Nell. I'll see you in the morning."

The Admiral peeked around the corner, seeing Hetty place her cell phone down on the hall table, along with her keys and purse. He tried to stay out of sight, not wanting her to know he'd tried to listen in on the end of her conversation.

But to no avail. Before she even turned in his direction, she called out, "You can come out now, AJ."

Huffing, he crossed his arms and came around the corner, stopping in the middle of the hallway to face her.

"Thought you said you'd be home earlier today," he said firmly.

She turned and matched his stance. "There were things to be taken care of for a new case."

"And why couldn't your team handle it?"

"Because they were out tracking down leads," she replied simply, dropping her arms and making her way to the large, winding staircase. "And for the record, I never actually confirmed I'd be home earlier. I said I would try."

She hadn't reached the second stair before he moved to follow. There was no way she was getting out of talking tonight…he would not allow it.

"That's a load of crap, Henrietta, and you know it!" he growled, now only a step behind her.

She turned quickly, her eyes suddenly alive with anger. "AJ, let it go!"

His eyes creased with frustration. "I am only trying to….

She held up a hand to interrupt him but wavered slightly. Quickly, she grasped the banister to keep from falling, as the Admiral's irritation instantly dissipated. Reaching forward, he put both hands on her waist to steady her.

"Henrietta?"

It took only a few seconds for her to shake off the dizzy spell. Standing straight once more, she looked up at the Admiral. "I'm fine. Just tired. Perhaps we can discuss this later."

"You're not fine, Henrietta," he replied softly, stepping up to the same stair she was on. "And we'll discuss this now…but I think it would be best for you to sit down."

"AJ…" she huffed, only to be cut off by his pulling her in to his side.

"No arguments…" he began, changing his tone slightly when he saw the hesitation playing out on her face, "…please."

Before, she would never have given in. But now….things had changed. And tonight especially, she was too tired and her head was pounding too much to disagree with him.

"Fine," she answered quietly, taking his offered hand.

He led her slowly up the rest of the stairs, noticing her evident exhaustion and stiff movements. And when they entered their bedroom and he turned on the overhead light, her wince and averted eyes confirmed for the Admiral that something more than a dizzy spell was going on.

Hetty dropped the Admiral's hand and quickly moved in to her closet, shutting the door behind her. He left her alone for a few minutes, allowing her time to compose herself. The Admiral knew Hetty hated to accept help from anyone…even if that person was her husband. Dependence on anyone other than herself was not something Henrietta Lange would ever be "ok" with...

The Admiral snapped out of his reverie when Hetty emerged from the closet a few moments later, having changed out of her suit in to a more comfortable pair of pants, shirt and heavy cardigan. Again, she averted her eyes from the harsh light above, moving to her bedside lamp and turning it on.

"Could you flip the switch?" she asked, sitting down on her side of the bed.

He obliged, standing from the arm chair to turn off the overhead light's switch by the door. Instantly, she seemed to relax. As he moved to sit beside her, he noticed the slight shake in her hand as she reached up to rub her neck.

"Day that bad?" he asked, sitting down next to her and tentatively moving his hand up her back. Gently, his fingers began to knead the tight knots in her shoulders, hoping to relieve some of the obvious tension she was holding in.

"No…not really…" she said, allowing her hand to drop as AJ's fingers took over massaging her aching neck.

"Then what gave you the headache?" he prodded, turning slightly and bringing both hands up to rub her extremely tight, slightly hot, neck muscles.

She shrugged. "Who knows…?"

The two remained silent for a few moments, AJ working over Hetty's muscles, and Hetty's weary body beginning to relax back against her husband's chest.

"Does it have to do with the team?" AJ asked, having finished rubbing her neck and now moving his hands up and down her arms.

Hetty's head remained lowered, though she moved it slightly from side to side. "It's just work, AJ. Nothing more."

"You don't need me to remind you what the doctor said, do you?"

Sitting up straight, her shoulders stiffened under his hands. 'No, you don't."

"Then why didn't you come home earlier today?" he asked again, still not sure she was telling him the truth.

It took a moment for her to answer. But finally, taking a deep breath, Hetty look her husband straight in the eye and said,"There are certain times I need to drown myself in work, AJ. You must know that by now."

Leaning down, he gently pressed his lips to the middle of her forehead. "I do…but it won't help anything if you push yourself too hard, Henrietta."

She nodded, offering a small smile before the pressure behind her eyes pounded stronger. Looking down, she hoped he hadn't noticed the pained expression cross her face. "I know."

"Humor an old man who is only concerned about his wife, ok?" he asked with a small chuckle, hoping to lighten the mood.

"I suppose…but if there is a case, I do need to be there, AJ," she reminded him, patting his leg and turning back around to her nightstand. She knew there had to be a bottle of aspirin or Tylenol in the drawer.

"I'll try to remember that," he agreed, watching her closely as she fumbled to open the nightstand's drawer. "Didn't you take anything yet?"

"No…not yet."

She popped three pills in her mouth and swallowed them with a bit of water from the bottle on her nightstand. Her head seemed to be swimming and the flashes of light were coming closer together. Sitting back against the headboard, she closed her eyes, hoping a moment's rest might make things settle.

AJ sat forward, brushing his fingers down her cheek. "You should eat something if you're taking those."

"I will," she said, forcing a smile. "Just give me a minute."

Shimmying off the bed, he squeezed her knee gently. "I'll go heat up the plates. Scotch or tea tonight?"

"Just tea…I doubt Scotch and aspirin would do me any favors tomorrow morning," she answered with a sly smile.

"Wouldn't be the first time you've tried it," he whispered in her ear, leaning over and kissing her softly. "I'll come up when everything is ready."

"Thank you," she whispered back, putting a hand on his cheek as he pressed his lips to hers again, a bit stronger this time.

Breaking, he winked at her and smiled. "Rest those eyes."

As he left the room, Hetty pulled the blanket up over her legs and sank down on to the mattress. After turning out the bedside lamp, she buried her head in her pillow, praying the pain stopped soon.

The team had been without her long enough….and she vowed not to let them down again.