Double Life
By that belle
A freak accident puts Kate into a coma. Nothing is what it seems when she finally wakes up... ..Tony & Kate.. ..Ari & Kate..
Ari watched gloomily from the shadows as the forensic scientist emerged from Raya's - or Kate, as the Americans called her - ward, followed soon after by Gibbs, and the other sleazy man they worked with. Ari knew him to be something of a ladies man, and would have him killed in a heartbeat if he learned that he had touched or made a move on Raya while she had been under the identity of 'Kate'. Reuben was away getting the two a good coffee - unlike the crap the hospital coffee machines came up with. Ari could hear the conversation clearly.
"Gibbs, there's something hinky going on here." The forensic scientist said.
"What are you talking about, Abs?" Gibbs asked, folding his arms.
"I was talking to the receptionist earlier." Abby confessed. "And she mentioned that Kate's husband and brother were in here earlier."
"What?" The ladies man asked. Ari scowled; he knew that look on his face. "Kate's married?"
"No, she can't be." Abby said. "She would have told me. We're friends!"
Ari turned, and slipped away unnoticed. He would visit Raya again when the federal agents had left. As he approached the lift, the doors opened. Reuben stood there with two plastic cups in his hand.
"Are we leaving, Ari?" He asked in Hebrew.
"We will return later." Ari replied. "Those federal agents do not know when to give up." He stepped into the elevator, and pressed the button to go down. The two men didn't speak again until they had left the hospital.
Two long, slow, torturous weeks of visiting before work, during work or on the way home from work was starting to take it's toll on the team. While they agreed that they weren't going to abandon Kate, the three decided that they would visit less often. Her status hadn't changed; she was still unconscious and the doctors said that it was likely she would be that way for a while.
This was a benefit for Ari and Reuben, who were able to visit her more often without hassle. Ari spent more time with her than Reuben, which he couldn't really understand. Raya was Reuben's sister. She wouldn't have abandoned him like this.
He sat with her one night, his hand placed over hers. The curtains in the ward were drawn back slightly, allowing the moonlight to shine through. A million thoughts were flowing through his head, one of which was affecting him the most.
How could Raya possibly forget who she was? This fake identity, 'Kate', had consumed her. It seemed to Ari as though she had gone to bed one night as Raya Zavad-Haswari, Mossad Agent, and woken up the next morning as Caitlin Todd, Federal Agent. It didn't make sense to him, and Ari didn't like it when things didn't make sense to him.
He was torn away from his thoughts when the hand he was holding moved, gripped his own and squeezed weakly. He looked over at her, and saw her dark eyes focusing on him.
"Ari." She said quietly. There was an edge in her voice, and it took Ari a moment to realise what it was.
An accent.
"Raya." He replied, smiling slightly and squeezing her hand back. He said to her, "How are you feeling?" But he said it in Hebrew, to test her. For some reason her memory had gone, and she had become someone else. He wanted to see it her memory was back. If it was, they would be returning to Israel. Ziva missed Raya. They had worked together on several occasions.
She just shrugged at him. When she spoke, she replied in English, which confused him. She hated speaking in English unless it was absolutely necessary. "What are you doing here?"
"What do you mean?" Ari asked, amused. "I am paying my wife a visit. Am I allowed that privilege?"
Her eyes closed. "Of course." She lay like that for a moment, before opening her eyes again. "Ari, if you don't mind… I'd like to rest now. Come and visit me later, alright?"
Ari nodded, and stood up. He leaned over and kissed her forehead, and then her lips. He smiled at her, and then left the ward. Once the door clicked shut, and she knew it was safe, she reached for the phone, and dialled quickly.
"Yeah, Gibbs."
"Boss, I still don't understand." Tony said as the car they were in sped through a red light. "You said something was up with Kate?"
Gibbs nodded, keeping his focus on the road in front of him. "Yeah. She's awake, and she mentioned something about Ari. She called me earlier."
"Ari?" Tony gaped at him. He remembered all too well Kate's recent ordeal. He had tried to be there for her, but she had closed him out. She had closed everyone out and dealt with it however she did.
"We're going to see what the situation is." Gibbs replied. "As well as Kate's condition. If Ari knows she is there then he may try to see her again."
Tony took all this in quietly. There wasn't a lot he could say. He sympathised with Kate. She just seemed to have more and more crap thrown at her. Just when she was getting back up, she would be knocked down again.
Gibbs looked at Tony, and saw the pain in his eyes. He knew all about Rule 12, and he knew about Tony's feelings for Kate. He didn't know if they were returned, because Kate guarded her feelings very well. He admired that feat in her. They pulled up outside the hospital and within five minutes were at Kate's side.
She was lying in her bed, staring up at the ceiling. If her eyes weren't blinking every so often, then Gibbs might have mistaken her for being dead. She looked over at them when they came in, and offered them a weak smile.
"How's your head?" Tony asked, taking one of the seats by her bed. Gibbs took the other seat.
Kate rolled her eyes. "Sore?" She offered, grinning.
Gibbs looked at Tony warningly. He then turned to Kate. "Do you want to tell me what happened?"
"Sure." She tried to sit up, but her head started to hurt, so she gave up and lay there. "When I woke up, he was in here. He was holding my hand. He called me 'Raya', and told me we were married." She bit her lip, and looked away from Gibbs. "He also mentioned a 'mission' that involved…"
"Involved who?" Gibbs asked.
Sighing, she turned and looked at him. "You, Gibbs." That didn't surprise him. He sat there for a while, thinking about it. It was something he usually did, so Kate turned to her other side, where Tony was sitting. She laid her hand out near the edge of the bed, and when Tony took it and squeezed it, she smiled tiredly. "How long have I been out?"
Tony shrugged. "About two weeks?" He offered. "We've been in to see you at least three times a day, everyday."
Once again, Kate rolled her eyes. To find that Ari had been sitting in her hospital room when she woke up from her coma had been terrifying. "That's why Ari was in my room when I woke up?" From behind her, Gibbs snorted. She looked over at him, her eyebrow raised. "Anyway," She said, trying to change the subject. "When can I leave?"
"When you're well enough." Gibbs replied.
Kate's eyes widened. "But what if Ari comes back?" She exclaimed. Tony was looking over at him from Kate's other side with the same shock on his face.
"Then you'll have to pretend when he's here." Gibbs said. Kate looked ready to explode. "I'm sorry, Kate, but it's a risk you're going to have to take. You're unwell."
"Can't you move me to another ward?" Kate whined. "He's slimy. He kissed me when he left, and it felt like someone was trying to force feed me those burgers Tony likes so much."
If Tony hadn't been brassed off because someone had kissed Kate before him, he was definitely brassed off because she insulted his burgers. But he said nothing.
"That would raise suspicion." Gibbs replied. "Listen, Kate…"
She looked away from him. "I don't want to hear it." She said. "Just go. I know that's what you were going to say, so just go." She looked at the bare table next to her bed. "Thanks for the flowers, by the way." She added sarcastically.
Gibbs left immediately, but Tony lurked. He sat back down again after Gibbs was gone, and the two just sat in silence. Tony desperately wanted Kate to look at him, but she wouldn't. Finally, he got up and sighed. "Well, Gibbs is waiting for me. I… probably should go."
"Alright." She agreed reluctantly. Just as he was about to move away from the bed, Kate grabbed his arm, and he looked into her fearful eyes. "Please come back soon." She said. "Tony, I'm scared… I don't want to leave here with Ari. I'm not Raya, I'm not."
"I believe you." Tony said. He leaned forward slowly and kissed her forehead. "I'll come back after work, alright? And I'll bring you some nice flowers."
She smiled at him. "Thanks, Tony." He turned to leave again, but she yanked on his arm and pulled him to her. She kissed him quickly, then pushed him away again. "Go," She laughed, and he grinned at her. "Before Gibbs comes back in."
He left her then, and when the door closed, she became sombre again. Kate then spent the rest of the afternoon mulling over the two very different kisses she had been given that day.
A/N: Who is she really? :) Thanks for reading.