Hi everybody thank you for all of your kind reviews,

The music for this chapter is 'Set The Fire To The Third Bar' by Snow Patrol and Martha Wainwright. I just thought it fitted the scene very well, anyway I just like the song.

Chapter 20

Ziva sat there in shock. Tony felt her tense up in his arms, he began to cough again and he could feel the black enveloping him.

Ziva didn't know what to say, then she looked up realising she knew exactly what to say but she had always been to gutless to say it.

"I love you too Tony." Tears began to fall down her cheeks.

"Will you do something for me Zi?" Tony asked his voice hoarse.

"Anything" She quickly promised.

"Get out of here," As he said these words Tony subconsciously began to stroke her hair "I know you can fight, get out of here, forget about me, move on find a new life, find somebody you love and be happy."

Ziva was taken aback by Tony's proposal, "I have already found someone who makes me happy." She said simply, "I have found someone that I love, I am not leaving without you Tony."

Tony snorted, an action which caused him to go into a large fit of coughing, "Come on Zi, we both know its unlikely that even if I do get out of here that I am going to live…"

Ziva bit her bottom lip not wanting to accept the truth which lay before her, but she knew with the injuries that Tony had sustained and his past medical history meant that survival was unlikely.

"You will live Tony." She said simply burying her face in his chest.

"Come on Zi face reality!" He snapped "Now you are going to get out of here and leave me to face the inevitable!" He pushed Ziva away from him so he was looking her in the eyes. "Leave me, find a new life, find somebody who will love you just as much as I do."

Ziva hung her head "As if anybody could love this," gesturing her hand up and down her body

Tony gently rubbed his thumb along her cheek "I love it."

Ziva grabbed Tony's hand and squeezed gently "I am going to find a way out of this, for both of us."

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Got a lead Boss!"

Who knew four words could bring such happiness to Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs.

"What is it McGee?" Gibbs asked

"Whale oil boss." McGee tapped some things into his keyboard and a picture popped up on the plasma.

After seeing Gibbs' expression McGee quickly elaborated "Must have been on the bottom of the kidnappers shoes boss., Only one place in the whole state has had any accusations placed against it of importing whale meat."

"Which is?" Gibbs snapped

"An Icelandic company called urh…Ref..zk..sd….Okay I can't pronounce that!" McGee exclaimed after trying to say the string of 25 or so letters on the screen.

"Then just give me a location!" Gibbs head slapped McGee.

"Urh sorry boss, 1054 31st Street Northwest, Washington." McGee read off the screen.

McGee turned around but Gibbs was already striding towards the elevator car keys in one hand SIG in the other.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Stay with me Tony," Ziva whispered her hands interlacing his "You are not leaving me now."

Tony tried to hang on, but he didn't know how much longer he could fight the tentacles of darkness that seemed to envelop him. Everything felt so heavy, he had gone past the stage of pain, now he just felt empty, hollow.

"Ziva, "He croaked "I feel,….I feel cold."