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..

The window.

Kate didn't know how she missed it earlier. In her panic, she had locked herself in the bathroom, but she hadn't bothered to check her surroundings. After she had taken a moment to collect herself, she looked around the small bathroom. On the hanger on the back of the door was an old bath robe. She tried to ignore the musty smell as she put it on. Also, above the old tub was a small window. It was big enough for her to climb out of, though, if she got her footing right.

Kate approached the tub, and climbed into it. She pushed open the window, and the cool morning air blew in. Before she even thought about attempting her escape, Kate knew that she had to turn on a tap or something – anything that would create a noise, so that her escape wouldn't be noticed.

There was a knock on the door. "Raya?" Reuben called through the door. "Come out here!"

Kate stepped lightly out of the tub, and scowled at the door. She went over to the hand basin, and turned on the cold tap as far as it would go. "I am pouring myself a bath." She replied. "Come back in... say, an hour or so?"

She heard Reuben curse, and then there was silence. Sighing, she turned back to the tub. It would be tricky, but she was sure she could do it.

Tony's thoughts were in overdrive as he followed the coordinates of the GPS that the cell phone Kate had called him from. Kate's voice had sounded so... broken when she had called, asking him to come and get her.

But, less than an hour after the phone call, he pulled up outside a shabby-looking motel. He looked at the place in disgust. He wondered, as he turned off the engine, why the place wasn't closed. It looked like it was about to fall down.

Time passed slowly. There was no sign of Kate. Tony considered calling the cell phone again – he had kept the number – but he wasn't sure what had gone down in the motel room. Just as he was about to consider calling Gibbs, he noticed something odd. A woman was struggling her way out of a bathroom window.

It was Kate.

Tony opened the door, and shut it quietly after him. He ran across the grass to where she was. And she was almost free of the window, when she slipped. With a muffled yelp, her leg caught, and then she fell. Tony couldn't quite catch her before she hit the ground. But he did hear her leg break. Before she had the chance to start screaming or yelling, Tony picked her up effortlessly, and had her back in his car before she realised what was going on.

"Tony?" Kate asked quietly, as her eyes opened. Her face was twisted in pain from the broken leg, and the fall. She turned to him, and looked at him for a whole minute, before smiling. "You came for me."

"I told you I would." Tony replied, grimacing. She looked in worse condition than when she was released from the hospital only the day before. "But not soon enough, apparently. I'll kill him for what he did to you, Kate."

"Tony..."

He shook his head firmly. "I'm serious. Have you even had a look at yourself, Kate?" He asked her. "You look like you've been to hell and back. You weren't ready to be discharged, but you were, and then following that, Gibbs just goes and... well, allows this to happen to you?"

He continued his rant, and Kate did what she did best when he got aggravated; closed her eyes and tuned him out. There would be time to reason later. Tony took her straight to A&E, and explained what had happened. As a nurse took Kate away in a wheelchair, Tony filled in the appropriate forms. He was about to follow her, when a thought struck him. He turned back to the receptionist and took his wallet out of his pocket.

"Now, this is extremely important." He said to her. "You see the people in this photo?" The photo had been taken before Kate joined NCIS – Ducky, Gibbs, Abby and Tony were all sitting around a table. They had been less stressful times. "These are the only people who are allowed to visit Special Agent Todd while she is here, do you understand?" The woman nodded in understanding. "Good. Because the receptionist who was here before released her into the care of two terrorists. And also before she was fit to be released."

The receptionist gulped. "I'll see to it that everyone is informed." She promised.

"Good." Tony smiled. "Because I'd hate to see NCIS suing your hospital or something..."

She nodded again, and Tony smiled at her, before going in the direction Kate had been taken. The receptionist had been a pretty young woman, and Tony might have considered pursuing her if it hadn't been for his feelings for Kate.

He came into Kate's new ward, to find that she was being prepared to be taken somewhere else. She looked up when he came in, and upon seeing the confused expression on his face, said, "I'm being taken to X-ray."

"Oh." There was silence between the two for a moment, before Tony realised something. "I'll have to call Gibbs." He said. "Then I'll join you in X-ray... that is, if you want me there?"

Kate nodded. "That would be nice." She smiled at him. "Thank you, Tony. For everything. If it wasn't for you, I'd still be in that awful motel room... or maybe even dead."

"Anything for you, Kate..." He said quietly. Tony just watched as the nurse wheeled Kate out again, and once she was gone, he went out into the hall. He called Gibbs from the payphone.

"Yeah, Gibbs."

"Boss, it's Tony."

"DiNozzo, you better have a damn good reason as to why you aren't in the office."

"Actually, I do..."

Abby was the first one to get to the hospital. She rushed out of the elevator and up to the receptionist. "Which way to Kate Todd's room?" She asked quickly.

The receptionist looked at her for a moment, and then down at something, and then up at her again. "Down the hall and to your left. It's the second room down the next corridor."

"Thanks." She said, slightly fazed by the reception. When she got to the right room, both Tony and Kate were there. Kate was sitting up in the bed with a cast on her left leg. She looked tired and frailer than when Abby last saw her, and it scared her. "Hey, Kate." She said, putting on a brave face for her friend. "How are you holding up?"

"Not too bad." Kate replied, leaning back a little. "These damn hospital beds are uncomfortable, though."

Abby smirked. She then looked over at Tony, who was looking out the window. "Tony, could I talk to you for a second?"

"I'm listening." He didn't turn away from the window.

Abby shot a look at Kate, who nodded. "Tony..." She said, tugging on his arm gently. "I think Abby wants to talk to you in private."

"Oh!" Tony went over to Abby immediately following that, and the two left the room. Tony shut the door after him, and turned to Abby. "What's going on, Abbs?"

"The strangest thing happened when I asked for Kate's room number." She said. "I don't suppose you know anything about that, do you?"

"Aaah, that's kinda my fault." Tony admitted. "I gave the receptionist a photo of all of us and told her that only we were allowed to visit Kate..." He scratched his head. "I also told her that if anyone other than us was allowed to see her, that, uh, NCIS would sue..."

"That was a mistake."

Gibbs walked up to the two. Tony looked at him, his eyes narrowed. "Maybe it was," Tony said, his voice becoming angry. "But it's a minimal mistake compared to what you put Kate through." Abby's mouth fell open, and Tony walked off, not letting anyone put another word in.