Tali's Second Year
As Tali grows, Ziva ventures out of the farmhouse more, but at a price. She is now more visible to others. When Ziva notices that she is being watched, things get ugly fast. The events leading up to 'Family First' on the Israel side.
Chapter 1: Leaps and Bounds - October
Ziva watched Tali running in the yard. The little girl was chasing after a butterfly, laughing and squealing in delight. At nearly sixteen months, Tali had changed so much since her first birthday that Ziva felt as though she chronicled a milestone every day.
"IMA!" Tali called out. Ziva looked over at the toddler and smiled. The butterfly was perched on Tali's hand! Tali grinned at her mother; then she waved her arms excitedly and the butterfly flew away. She pointed at it and reached as though trying to get the insect to return to her hand.
As Ziva watched her little girl, a glint of a reflection of the sunlight off something in the olive grove caught her eye. She scanned the trees, hoping to spot the source. "Come, Tali, it is time to get a snack," she picked up the protesting toddler and carried her inside.
Tali did not want to go inside, but when Ziva offered her a handful of crackers, she quickly settled down and started munching away. Ziva sighed and looked outside towards the olive trees, hoping to catch another glimpse of whatever had caught her eye earlier.
She was startled from her thoughts by Tali tugging at her shirt hem, reaching up her hands and opening and closing them to signal that she wanted more crackers. Ziva turned from the window and handed another handful of crackers to the toddler and then poured some juice into a lidded cup with a straw for her daughter.
As she watched Tali devouring her snack, Ziva reflected on the summer. It had been relatively quiet, but Orli's assignment of a security detail to watch over Ziva and Tali still had left Ziva unsettled. She wondered just how much of it was purely Orli keeping an eye on her and Tali out of some misguided guilt for breaking up the David family years ago. Ziva trusted Orli, to a point, but she still had her doubts about the Mossad Director's ulterior motives. More than once, Ziva had wondered if Orli was trying to make sure that she (Orli) would eventually acquire Eli's private files for her own use.
Despite the detail's best efforts, Ziva made them every time. She pretty much knew who the individuals assigned to the detail were now. She had point-blank asked Orli if the officers were trainees or experienced. Orli had not replied, but her nonverbal cues let Ziva know that the individuals were mostly young trainees. Having that knowledge helped Ziva identify when she and Tali were followed in Haifa by two unknown persons in July and August.
More importantly, Ziva had sent a brief email to Tony on his birthday, wishing him a happy birthday with two additional words: "Someday soon." She had debated sending anything, but her new resolve to determine the path ahead gave her the courage to hit send. She had reminded herself that she was in charge of creating the future she wanted and that she did indeed deserve his love. If only she could get the monkey of Eli David's world off her back! Maybe finding those files that supposedly existed, or proving that they did not exist was her ticket out.
"IMA!" Tali tugged at her mother's shirt, wanting attention. Ziva looked down at her daughter, seeing the eyes of the man she loved with all of her being.
"Yaldati, would you like to go to Haifa for a few days?" Ziva knew that Tali loved the beach and with the cooler weather, mother and daughter could play on the beach during the day. Tali followed her Ima into the bedrooms as Ziva gathered what she needed for the trip. She packed a duffel bag and put it into the car along with a box of diapers for the baby and some snacks for the ride.
She buckled Tali into her car seat and headed to the highway. On the drive to Haifa, Ziva told Tali stories about her Abba. How so many years ago, Ima and Abba had played on the beach when they first met. How Abba had spent many nights with Ima watching movies and cuddling on the sofa in Ima's apartment. How Ima and Abba had been so happy when they were sharing time together.
As Ziva pulled into the driveway, she glanced back at her little one in the rearview mirror. Tali was sound asleep in the car seat, her head to one side and snoring softly. Ziva smiled; Tali had inherited something from both of them! 'I will reunite with your Abba before your next birthday.' Ziva made a promise to her daughter.
She carried the sleeping little girl into the house and gently placed her in the bed in the room that had once been her own. So many memories within those four walls. While the baby was sleeping, Ziva made a shopping list for groceries; mother and daughter would go shopping after Tali woke from her nap.
The little one slept for about an hour, giving Ziva time to get some light cleaning done around the house. When Tali did wake, she padded to the kitchen where her Ima was wiping down the counters. "Ima," Tali tugged at Ziva's shirt hem. "IMA!"
Ziva picked up the still waking toddler and hugged her, "Did you have a good nap, yaldati? Would you like a snack?" She moved to the refrigerator and took out a small bowl of diced peaches, one of Tali's favorite snacks that she had brought from the farmhouse. The little girl moved excitedly in her Ima's arms, reaching for the snack. Ziva placed Tali in her high chair and opened the bowl. She placed the fruit on the tray and watched as her daughter grabbed pieces in each hand.
"You are so like your Abba with food, motek," Ziva chuckled.
"ABBA," Tali mumbled through the food in her mouth.
When the snack was finished, Ziva wiped the baby's hands and face. She lifted her from the high chair and went to the girl's room to change her diaper and shirt. As she worked, she told Tali a story about her own Ima and sister Tali. "Your Savta would have loved you, yaldati. She would have spoiled you too." Tali grinned at her mother, her DiNozzo genes apparent.
At the market, Ziva placed Tali in the child seat on the grocery cart and headed down the aisles. She placed bread, hummus, milk and cereal in the cart. She was in the produce aisle, talking to the baby as she selected fresh peaches from the display. "How many should we buy, Tali? Three? Four?"
"Hello, Ziva." A voice startled Ziva from her chat with Tali. Ziva looked up to see Adam Eschel looking at her with a question in his eyes.
"Hello, Adam," Ziva responded.
Adam looked at Tali, "And who is this little beauty?"
Ziva hesitated, not many others knew about her daughter, would she be safe in disclosing that information to Adam? "I… she… is my…" Ziva thought about what she would say, deciding that the truth would be best. "This is my daughter, Tali." She instinctively moved closer to the baby, and Tali clutched her Ima's arm.
"Tony's daughter," Adam had seen the little girl's eyes and quickly made the connection. "Is he here as well?"
"Ima," Tali whimpered, burying her face against Ziva.
"Shh, yaldati, Adam is a friend of Ima and Abba," Ziva soothed her daughter by speaking softly and rubbing her back as she picked the child up from the seat.
"Abba!" Tali raised her head to look at her Ima.
"Adam," Ziva repeated as Tali shyly looked at her mother's friend. Adam smiled and Tali gave a small smile back. "She is a bit shy," Ziva explained to Adam.
"Kelev," Tali pointed to her stuffed dog in the seat of the cart. Ziva shifted, trying to balance the little girl and her purse to reach the toy. Adam picked it up and offered it to the little one. Tali at first turned her face back into her mother, but then reached out and took the toy from Adam. She grinned at him as she clutched her favorite toy to her chest tightly. Adam grinned back; Tali's grin was purely her father and any doubts as to her male parent were erased from his mind.
"We must go, Adam," Ziva told him. "We are staying at Ima's house; come see us tomorrow around 1000." She put Tali back in the cart and nodded to her Shin Bet friend. She grabbed the bag of peaches and put them in with the other groceries and moved off toward the checkouts.
Back at the house, Ziva made chicken tenders and veggie sticks for dinner, knowing Tali would devour the food. She had peaches and strawberries for dessert, but made sure not to let the baby see her favorite fruits before dinner. Mother and daughter sat on the screened porch as the sun set, Ziva telling her daughter more stories about NCIS and Abba.
At bed time, they followed the same routine the pair had established over the summer. After Tali's bath, Ziva put the toddler's pajamas on and then read from one of the story books that had been hers. After the story, mother and daughter looked at the picture of Tony and Ziva in Paris. "Laila tov, Tali," Ziva pointed to Tali, tickling her slightly.
"Lai tof, Ima," Tali giggled and tried to tickle her mother.
Together they pointed to Abba, "Laila tov, Abba." Tali kissed both of her parents' pictures and then her Ima. She held the picture to Ziva to kiss Abba.
Ziva placed a kiss on Tony's image; "Ani ohevet otach," she said softly. She then kissed Tali and pulled her covers up. "Ani ohevet otcha, yaldati."
Adam visited with Ziva and Tali several times since their encounter in the Haifa supermarket. On the third visit he brought his partner and the man's son and daughter to meet Ziva. The boy was about five and the girl almost seven. Tali delighted in having other children to play with, and ran after them happily in the farmhouse yard.
Adam and Zevi Ben Gashri had been together for almost three years; they had met when Adam investigated the suicide bombing by a Palestinian that killed Zevi's wife. Zevi worked for Aman, the military intelligence counterpart to Mossad and Shin Bet. The children, Adina and Avi, had taken to Adam easily. Within six months of meeting, they had moved in to one residence and formed a family. Ziva was happy for her childhood friend.
It was Zevi who alerted Ziva to some international chatter about Eli's alleged secret files in early November.