A/N: Hey everyone! I'm actually relatively on top of things again (because I swore I wasn't gonna get this chapter up until at least Christmas time…lol). Anyway, thanks very much to those who reviewed #12…and who have been reviewing this entire story. I LOVE getting feedback and just knowing people are still reading.

So this chapter…bit of a gamble. Special thank you to Tooth Fairy who allowed me to bounce my original idea off of her and helped rework the plot and well…saved it, essentially… Hopefully you guys like it…: )

Chapter Thirteen – Classified

"Hey…" Jack pushed his way into Tony's office looking slightly disheveled. It was a little over a month after their anniversary and despite a few mild threats there had been only one thing on everyone's mind since.

Tony raised an eyebrow and glanced away from his laptop.

"What's up?"

"I just got back from the interviews with Chappelle…for someone to go undercover with…"

"And I take it no one was jumping out at you?"

Jack scowled slightly. "I'm not taking any of those kids down to Mexico with me."

"Well you can't go alone." Tony reminded him impatiently. "So you may as well get that outta your head. Division won't authorize an undercover operation if you don't have a partner. Especially when you're dealing with -"

"I know what I'm dealing with Tony. And I'm telling you now I'd be better off alone than taking someone fresh out of Quantico." Jack snapped harshly. "So we need to find someone else."

Tony sighed heavily. "You'll also need a contact in Mexico."

"Yeah I know." Jack shook his head. "And that's not looking any more promising at this rate."

"Look, we still have a couple of weeks and if we have to delay it a few days until we have the right people…"

"The longer we wait the longer it'll be before we infiltrate their inner circle. Something could go down by then…"

"Well that's a risk I'm willing to take if it means having the right people in place to handle this." Tony responded firmly before sighing deeply and scratching the back of his neck. "I'll make a few calls, alright?"

Jack nodded gruffly and they both remained motionless for a moment.

"Have you said anything to Kate?" Tony ventured carefully. "Or Kim?"

"It's classified."

"So you don't plan on mentioning you'll be disappearing for a while?" he raised an eyebrow surreptitiously.

"I'm not saying anything until we have the details finalized." Jack said flatly.

Tony bit his lip, sensing the other man's uncertainty. "You should at least mention it, Jack…she'll understand."

Jack sighed heavily.

"I'll see…" he finally decided before turning to leave the office. "Let me know what names you get."

"Will do."

Midway through the afternoon Tony had an epiphany. He reached for his phone and dialed the number for the Conference room.

"Dessler."

"Hey…when you're done briefing the analysts can I talk to you for a second."

"Yeah, sure."

Thirty minutes later she was seated on the couch in his office.

"When you spent those weeks at Division for field training…was there anyone there who uh…caught your interest?"

She looked at him curiously. "Jack hasn't found anyone he wants to take undercover."

Tony smirked a little. "What can I say, he knows what he wants."

She smiled and reached for a piece of paper before scribbling a name on it.

"Chase Edmunds." She said as she handed it to him. "You met him, remember? He had just transferred to the west coast…I know he mentioned wanting to take a position back east where his girlfriend lives, so I don't know if he'll be available but he'd be worth a shot…"

"You're the best." He declared as he made her way towards the door. She grinned.

"You can make it up to me later…"

They were dozing on the couch after dinner, her feet in his lap and her head propped up against a pillow. They were watching some show and it was complete and utter garbage but Tony didn't mind so much. His day had been one of the busiest he'd had in a long time. Not necessary stressful in the life-threatening sense of the word, but busy. First he'd spent the hour after he'd spoken with Michelle trying to track down Chase Edmunds. He'd then spent forty minutes on the phone with Ryan trying to convince him that it was in their best interest to fly the guy out from Washington for a meeting. And finally he'd had an extensive meeting with Jack going over the latest Intel on the Salazars, (courtesy of Gael and Chloe), and then explaining the prospective meeting with the Rookie Field Operative. It wasn't until he mentioned that Michelle had spent time with him at Division and had recommended him specifically that Jack decided it was worth a shot.

When they finally made it home, takeout in hand, it was almost 9-o-clock and both he and Michelle were beat.

So, naturally, as soon as he was starting to contemplate sleep his cell phone rang again. It was Ryan. Some paperwork had gone missing at Division and in an attempt to recover it some new analyst had caused part of the server to crash. He needed a hard copy.

"I'll be back…" Tony grumbled in frustration, pulling on his shoes, and leaning over the back of the couch to press a quick kiss behind Michelle's ear before heading out the door.

After an hour of flipping mindlessly between different shows and another twenty minutes of leafing through a magazine, Michelle gave up trying to come up with something worthwhile to do. Staring at the discarded pans soaking in the sink she sighed. Not wanting to go to bed alone, she reluctantly picked up a sponge and began to scrub...

She was halfway done when the front door opened and a few seconds later Tony appeared at her side.

"Hey,"

"Hey," he tossed his bag on one of the stools and began unbuttoning his collar for the second time that evening.

"You get everything sorted out?" she asked, amidst her mindless scrubbing.

"Uh huh…" he told her lazily as he pushed his sleeves passed his elbows and physically shifted her further along the sink to make room for himself.

"Leave it. I'm almost done…" she tried to argue.

He ignored her.

"Tony, I'm serious." She crinkled her brow and he laughed softly as he sunk his hands below the water.

As they worked, she gave a small yawn and lifted the back of her hand to cover her mouth and then push the hair out of her eyes. Tony casually slid one arm around her waist as he kissed the side of her neck before reaching both arms across her stomach.

"Tired?" he asked.

"Mhm…" she tilted her head back against his shoulder and allowed her eyes to shut as he swayed her softly back and forth.

His fingers gently manipulated the soft skin of her forearms and he smiled against her neck.

"You look nice today." He mumbled almost incoherently against her skin.

For him it had been one of those days where he just simply couldn't stop staring. Her eyes had bags underneath them, but her face still lit up every time he met her gaze; her smooth cheeks were slightly reddened from the heat of the day and he'd been wanting to nuzzle up against them since early that afternoon; her hair was pulled back loosely with pieces falling out all over the place and the stray curls spilled uncontrollably across her face, like even her clip had given up for the night. She was becoming more drained by the minute and he couldn't help but notice that amidst all the imperfections brought on by the long hours she could've have looked more perfect than at that very moment.

He squeezed her a little more firmly against him and breathed softly for a few seconds before returning to the dishes.

They chatted easily about what had transpired during Tony's late-night visit to CTU. Michelle listened intently as he detailed his account of how the analyst's mistake had forced an entire reboot of the system, which Ryan had requested his stick around for since computers weren't his field of expertise and 'apparently these analysts don't even know what the hell they're doing anymore'.

"Anyway, it's done now…" Tony said with a sigh of relief, drying the last pot Michelle had handed to him. "Chappelle wanted me to stay in case the night shift screwed it up again but I just explained how lonely you get without me to keep you company."

Michelle rolled her eyes before splashing some of the soapy water against his shirt and laughing at his dumfounded expression.

"Did you mention something about how delusional you get when you're tired?" she teased.

He splashed her back, eliciting a squeal as she attempted to nail him again. When he responded by soaking her blouse she lunged for the tap and aimed it in his direction; resulting in a struggle for control. She managed a few squirts at him before he took possession away from her entirely and aimed the full force of the spray, drenching her from head to toe. Nothing to lose now, Michelle dove and managed to regain control for long enough to get him almost as good as he got her.

They both stood beside the sink, panting, laughing, dripping and trying not to shiver.

"I think we'd better get you out of those clothes before you get sick and I have to take care of you."

"It's nice to know you're so concerned with my health…" she countered sarcastically, tossing him a dishtowel to dry his face.

He laughed and reached for her hand.

"You could've at least used warm water." She told him stubbornly as he guided her towards him.

"Uh…I hate to break it to ya Michelle, but you were the one who turned on the tap." He teased back and began undoing the buttons of her shirt and tossing it to the ground before running his hands vigorously over her goosebumps. He tilted his head to one side and studied her body appreciatively for a few seconds before leaning in to kiss her shoulder and neck.

She tried to maintain an air of indifference, but gave up when he nipped gently at the soft skin of her collarbone and threw her hands up in defeat; allowing them to land against his own shirt and get to work on the buttons.

"C'mon…" he kissed her lips once firmly and held on to her hand. "Shower…"

She nodded and started to follow him towards the stairs, when he stopped midway and turned around to scoop her into his arms.

"Tony!" she lambasted halfheartedly and her heart gave a little, unexpected flutter when he pushed a dripping curl out of her eyes…

A week after the system's reboot Tony received a phone call he hadn't been expecting.

"Tony it's me." Lisa's voice resonated quietly. A wave of panic washed over him at the tone and he felt his muscles tense in preparation for what she was about to say.

"What's wrong?" she never called him at work.

"I um…" she winced. "I have news…but you can't say a word to mom or dad or even Amy because she'll squeal and he doesn't want…"

"What the hell's going on?"

"Rick's back."

His whole body tensed and every wick of moisture on his skin ran cold. His stomach tightened and he rested his forehead in his free hand.

"Tony…"

"I heard you." He growled. He didn't know how to respond to that. Bitter? Angry? Or even…happy?

"When?"

"He called me last night. He just landed in New York."

"How is he?"

She sighed. "He sounds fine…I guess…but I mean with him you never really know…"

"Damnit." Tony cursed softly, shaking his head in disbelief. "Is it still…?"

"The CIA partially declassified it…meaning he's allowed to tell people he still exists but nothing about what happened. God, I don't even know if he's in one piece…I can't believe it's been…"

"Four years…" Almost to the day he left.

"Does he know what he's doing yet?"

"No. He didn't say much…he's on leave indefinitely…he kept asking about you…"

"What'd you say…?"

"Just…told him about Michelle…how you were still in LA…he wants to see you."

"Well did you tell him that I really don't give a -"

"The least you can do is talk to him!"

"And I don't plan on doing that."

"Tony…"

"He takes no responsibility for anyone but himself…He thought he could just pick up and leave and all his mistakes would disappear… You saw what it did to everyone…mom stayed in bed for a month…Amy had to go to that damn psychologist she was so depressed, and you…"

Tony sighed heavily.

"People change in four years. You could at least give him a chance."

"Somehow I doubt that'll be happening…"

"Well the way I see it, you don't have a choice because he's flying into LA tomorrow and I highly doubt it'll take him long to find you once he gets there…"

"And I'm sure I have you to thank for that..."

"He doesn't need my help to find you!"

There was an awkward silence.

"Anyway, I'm going. Make sure you tell Michelle."

The phone clicked before Tony could respond.

"These are the debriefings from Field Ops." Michelle stated crisply as she stepped into Tony's office later that afternoon. "Gael's forwarding them to Division right now. How's the status report coming?"

"Huh?" he glanced up as though just realizing she'd entered the room. He sighed. "Sorry…what'd you say?"

"Debriefings." She tossed the file onto his desk and shot him a curious look. "How's the status report going?"

"Done." He sighed again and leaned back in his chair.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah…are you almost ready to go?"

She nodded, the anxiety present on her face. "Fifteen minutes…?"

" 'Kay…" he clawed at his cheek before meeting her eyes. "We need to talk…"

Her brow contracted, deducing there was obviously something he wasn't telling her.

"What's wrong?" she reached out to touch his hand gently. She'd never seen him this uncomfortable.

He eased slightly when she made contact. "I uh…I just got off the phone with Lisa…"

"Is everything alright?" her eyes widened slightly with concern. Lisa, Tony's middle sister, had moved to Boston a little under two years before thanks to an abusive relationship with a long time boyfriend. She knew he still worried about her (all three of his sisters, really) constantly.

"Nah, she's fine. But uh…do you remember when I told you about…" he took a deep breath. "About Rick?"

She felt a chill creep up the back of her neck. Of course she remembered. It wasn't a conversation she was likely to forget.

"Yeah…"

Tony scratched the back of his neck awkwardly and focused on the stack of papers in front of him, avoiding her eyes.

"He's back."

They'd had this conversation about three months into their relationship. She'd been instructed to pull something out of one of his desk drawers and had stumbled upon a small stack of old pictures. He couldn't have been much more than twenty in them, Rachel was still in high school, Lisa looked ten or eleven and Amy may as well have been a baby. She admired the picture with amusement, taking notice of the fifth, unknown figure.

She tossed the USB drive he'd asked for on the coffee table before sinking down beside him on the couch.

"Nice picture…" she teased, making a point to examine the attire of the girls, (particularly Rachel who was obviously at the height of fashion at the time) and his hair, which was significantly longer.

He snatched it out of her hand instinctively, almost a little too aggressively, before allowing a smile to form on his face.

"It was a long time ago…" he defended pointlessly and she laughed, leaning in for further examination.

"Who's that?" she pointed to the fifth individual, a boy slightly shorter than Lisa with an unmistakable resemblance to Tony. "Cousin?" she ventured a guess.

He tensed and shook his head, eyes fixated on the picture, silently cursing himself for forgetting he'd shoved the entire stack in the drawer.

She frowned, noting his discomfort.

"He's uh…" Tony leaned over the coffee table and clawed at the side of his face as he considered how to explain the situation.

"My brother…Rick."

She stared at him in surprise. "You have a brother?" he'd been speaking relatively consistently of his sisters for the past three months, but he'd never once mentioned a brother. Fearing the unthinkable had happened, she said nothing.

Tony finally snapped out of his trance. "He's alive." He told her flatly. "He's just not around anymore."

She definitely felt the disdain in his voice as he spoke.

"He left about three years ago. He's doing some stuff for the CIA and isn't allowed to talk to anyone and couldn't tell anyone he was leaving… One night he just was gone and no one knew anything. They didn't know if someone he'd been trailing had finally gotten to him and just got rid of the body…but the facts didn't add up…and last year he e-mailed me from an encrypted server to say he was alive and he didn't know if he'd be back and not to say anything."

"Oh my god…" she stared in disbelief.

Tony nodded slowly. "Anyway, the operation is classified…it has every tag on it you could possibly imagine and I think three people in the entire system had the clearance for it. That's why I didn't tell you. I'm sorry…"

"No…" she nodded in agreement. "Of course…I'm just…wow."

He sighed heavily. "I should've said something instead of leaving you to find out on your own…I wasn't trying to lie intentionally or anything, it just…"

"Honey, don't worry about it." She assured him easily. "It doesn't matter."

"Thing is…when he left we weren't exactly on the best of terms… I don't think he's planning on coming back at all…even if he survives whatever the hell they're doing out there."

"How come?"

"A week before they asked him to go he found out his…he got this girl he was seeing pregnant. He only told Rachel and Lisa and me…And then he jumped at the opportunity to bail. He's not exactly the most committed…he screws around a lot…I thought he'd grow out of it after college but it never happened. Anyway, he got her pregnant and they got in some big fight so when he got the opportunity to leave he took it. And then when he told me I accused him of basically running away…we argued…he left and that was it."

Michelle swallowed hard, attempting to process all of this.

"Your parents never…"

"They just assumed he's dead…they never had a funeral or anything because I think they kept hoping they were wrong but… My mom and Amy just about lost it when he disappeared so they avoid talking about it."

"Were you close? I mean…before everything…"

"Yeah…I guess so." he nodded softly. "We stuck together…and then he went to college and I was working at DOD, so I wasn't around as much and he just kept getting worse. I didn't know what to do half the time – I was just relieved he'd still tell me stuff so I could attempt to keep an eye on him. After college he joined the Marines, went abroad a few times with Special Forces and then he left."

"So he's how old now?"

"Twenty-six this year. He and Lisa are eleven months apart and they drove each other insane…if they weren't related I don't think she'd be able to stand him…"

"So she knows?"

He bit his lip awkwardly. "Yeah I uh…I screwed up and told her last Christmas…She keeps bugging me to tell everyone else but…y'know… Classified."

After that they sat in a stone cold silence for god only knew how long. Michelle wasn't sure what to say and Tony just didn't seem to want to say anything. He stared at his hands for what seemed like an eternity before Michelle suggested a movie. He obliged willingly.

Tony had never brought up his brother again. Not when she met his parents ("I always felt bad for Tony…being surrounded by girls" his dad had said quite cheerfully), not when they were sending out wedding invitations, Christmas shopping…whatever. Rick Almeida was introduced to her once and from then on he was merely a ghost hanging over his brother's head. Until now…

"Are you okay?" she asked gently, her fingers pressing firm circles against the back of his hand.

"He's coming to see me...and I dunno…" he sighed in defeat. "I don't know what he expects me to say to him."

"He's your brother, Tony. No matter what he did or how he acted it was just a fight…it can't be that bad."

"I know…"

"You're just stubborn." She teased lightly.

He smiled a little. "Yeah, I guess."

Her hand had made its way along the inside of his wrist and up his forearm. She looked at him seriously "You may not have agreed with the decision he made but it doesn't concern you. He's an adult. You can't let it come between you."

"I know…at the time I just kept thinking if anyone had done that to one of the girl's I'd have killed 'em with my bare hands."

She smiled and brushed her thumb across his cheek.

"There's two sides to every story."

"Yeah…you're right," though he couldn't imagine that changing much. He squeezed her hand back and waited a minute before speaking again "Listen um…Lisa said he's coming to LA tomorrow so…"

"So I'll be my charming self." She smiled reassuringly.

He chuckled softly and after a few minutes she leaned in a kissed the corner of his mouth.

"I need to finish up the logs. Are you gonna be alright?"

He nodded slowly. "Yeah…I'll be fine."

They were sitting on the couch after work the next night and he could tell Michelle was nervous. She was fidgeting, something he found slightly amusing but knew she never did unless she was trying to keep herself incessantly busy. To be honest, he was nervous too but he wasn't planning on letting that show… he just didn't want to admit that Rick's reappearance could have such an affect on him.

"Do you think he'll call first?" Michelle ventured.

Tony shook his head and said simply "No."

As if on cue the doorbell rang.

Tony bit his lip as Michelle looked at him expectantly, wondering if he might need a little push into the hallway. When all was said and done he was still Tony's brother and she'd realized in that last day that he'd missed him a hell of a lot more than he'd ever let on before.

She didn't need to say anything. He wordlessly rose and made his way slowly for the door. She followed a few paces behind, lingering in the alcove between the kitchen and the hallway and feeling her own nerves worsen as her stomach twisted uncomfortably. She smoothed her skirt and pushed her hair behind her ears as she prepared to meet the reclusive Rick Almeida…

A/N: For more details on the "family tree" I've created check out chapter 3 of 'You and Me' : ).