A/N: Ugh, we're so not happy with this chapter. It was impossible to write for some reason, and we don't like the way it turned it out.
BUT we're almost done with chapter 8, which is much better, and should be up tomorrow or Friday.
AS always...PLEASE review?
Tony had to hand it to her; Ziva was a pro. Whatever she was thinking or feeling, she didn't show it. She blinked slowly, as if trying to place him, before her face broke out in a huge smile. A few years ago, Tony might have believed that smile was an actual expression of happiness, but now he knew her well enough to know it hadn't really reached her eyes. When Ziva's smile was genuine, her eyes were wider; they narrowed when she was faking it.
"Varnaz?" she exclaimed, as if she couldn't believe he was standing in front of her. She rose from her chair and crossed the room to him.
"Ah," he said in an accent Tony couldn't place, "It is you, Lina."
Ziva leaned in and they kissed on both cheeks, earning an eye roll from Tony. He hated the double cheek kiss; really, what could be more pretentious than that?
"Querido," Ziva started, coming off the second cheek, "How long has it been?" Tony swallowed hard as he watched her. She was even standing with allure. Her left leg crossed over right, she was leaning in slightly towards Varnaz, and even that proximity made Tony's skin crawl.
Ignoring the question, Varnaz turned his attention to Tony, who smiled tightly and nodded at him. Ziva gave a tinkling little laugh, and rushed between them. "How silly of me." She cooed in a very un-Ziva like tone. Tony bit back a smile and made a note to remind her to try acting if Gibbs ever fired them.
"Varnaz Terzian meet Aaron Cambridge." They shook hands tentatively. Ziva looked at the ground to hide her smile when she saw the expression on Tony's face as he regarded Varnaz. She had seen that look before. Every single time a male, other than McGee, Vance, Gibbs or Ducky approached her.
"Aaron Cambridge." Tony repeated, shaking his hand and squeezing just a little too hard. "Department of Defense, great to meet you."
"Varnaz Terizan," he said in a cool, calm voice; the polar opposite of Tony's self assured, boisterous tone. Varnaz said nothing else, offered no personal information. Tony reminded himself to be cool; as much he loved watching Ziva in action, there was something about this guy that his intuition scream.
"Aaron is my boss." Ziva offered. She put on a sweet tone and turned to Tony. "Actually, Aaron, would you mind if we took a quick walk?"
"Of course not, Lina." Tony replied easily, flashing a grin. "Things are under control here for now."
"Oh thank you querido." She purred, sounding so unlike herself that Tony had to fight the urge to burst out laughing. "I won't be long."
Tony watched in silent amusement as she led Varnaz out of his office, through hers, and around a corner before her voice rang out again. "Sorry querido, I forgot my phone. I am not supposed to leave the office without it. Wait here, yes?"
She hurried back into Tony's office and closed the door behind her. He cocked his head to the side and smirked.
Ziva held up one finger. "DiNozzo, I am warning you," she hissed, "One mocking word, and you will regret it!"
Tony was about to mock her anyway, but given the events of last night, regret suddenly meant so much more than losing a hand or most of his toes. It was Ziva's turn to smirk as the flicker of recognition reached his eyes. She nodded and gave his tie a slight tug, pulling him toward her.
"Exactly." She murmured in his ear. Okay, so Tony wasn't going to mock her in this moment. It was a golden opportunity to have something to hold over her head, but he was fairly certain he wouldn't survive without experiencing her mouth on his again, so he exercised rare restraint.
She busied herself clipping a tiny recording device to her bra strap, and Tony busied himself looking down her shirt. "Enjoying the view, Tony?" she murmured, securing her recorder in place and pulling her top back into place.
"Lina…" he warned mockingly. "Good employees don't waste their bosses' time asking questions they already know the answers to."
Ziva rewarded his teasing with one of his favorite Ziva expressions; the raise of her eyebrows, slight turn of head, and twist of her mouth in the same direction. "Are you going to smack me for it?" she asked.
"Not on the head." He said with a grin so suggestive it would have made anyone blush. With that, Tony place his hands on the small of back, low enough for them to graze her ass and pushed her toward the door. "Go get 'em tiger."
Tony sat at his desk with the receiving end of Ziva's recorder, listening as she and Varnaz made their way out of the building…silently. Tony's brow furrowed in confusion; for a guy who had been hung up on a girl for nine years, you'd think he'd have more to say.
"It is good to see you." It was Ziva's voice that broke the silence. "You certainly look well."
There was a long pause before Varnaz spoke again, and in that pause Tony's gut clenched. He'd never understood Gibbs more than in that moment, when he decided, no knew, without a shred of proof or evidence that something was wrong.
"Eduardo saw you with your…boss." Varnaz said.
"I was wondering how you knew that I had returned."
"I am still wondering why you left." He said shortly, with an audible edge to his tone. Unable to see them, it gave Tony an unrelenting sense of trepidation, but as the one in the conversation, Ziva wasn't worried.
She shot Varnaz a mysterious smile. "A friend had a yacht. Carpe diem." She said casually.
"Was this a male friend, Lina?" he asked through gritted teeth.
Ziva gave a calculating eye roll and gave a dismissive wave of her hand. "It was nine years ago. What does it matter?" She patted his arm and kept talking. "After that, I decided to take advantage of my mother's American citizenship and moved to the States. I was translating in D.C. until I was transferred to Cartagena."
"How fascinating." Varnaz replied in a biting tone. Ziva blinked, taken aback. Whatever reaction she had been expecting, it was not this.
"You do not sound too happy to see me…" she trailed off, keeping her tone light and teasing.
"Ah yes, I forgot. The world turns for Lina Aperador. Now that you're back, the sun can shine again. I should be thrilled."
Ziva stopped walking and took a step toward him, improvising and invading his some of his space. It always worked on Tony, didn't it? "Tell me," she said slowly, "Why you hunted me down if you are going to be so rude?"
He sighed. "I'm sorry, Lina. I don't mean to behave harshly, but when Eduardo told me he saw you, I did not expect him to say it was draped all over another man."
Ziva faked a throaty laugh and waved her hand again. "Nonsense, querido, I was draped over no one. I am just very friendly, you know that." She gave him her best dazzling smile. "And Aaron is the only person I know in Cartagena," she lowered her eyes and looked up at him through her lashes, "Except for you."
Varnaz chuckled. "I forgot how charming you are, Lina Aperador." He said in a softer tone.
"So you are happy to see me." Ziva concluded.
"Of course I am." Another pause. "But surprised at how garish you look, Lina. These tight clothes, this makeup! You look so American."
"I have been in America." Ziva pointed out good naturedly, using every ounce of willpower to keep her voice engaging.
"And that is an excuse to walk around looking like some kind of whore?" he spit out in a venomous tone. This gave Ziva pause; if anyone called Ziva David a whore, she would deliver a swift kick to their testicles, but Lina Aperador was not that kind of woman.
So Ziva-as-Lina resisted her natural instincts and chose instead to stop short, turn on her heel and stomp away haughtily. When she snuck a glance over her shoulder, he was watching her leave.
"So I have not completely ruined the mission." She concluded after she finished telling Tony the story. She frowned and ran a hand through her hair. "Not yet at least."
Tony chuckled in an attempt to act normal and cover his increasing sense of trepidation. "Trust me, Zi. He'll be back. How could he resist you?"
"It is not me he is resisting." Ziva snapped. "It is this ridiculous cover, Lina. I would never behave this way." She sighed in frustration; she used to enjoy going under cover and seeing how well she could pose as someone else, but these days she just wanted to be Ziva.
Tony smiled and nudged her with his elbow. "Yea, I know," he murmured softly, "That's why I keep you around, David."
Ziva was more touched by his comments than she cared to admit to either of them, but she leaned into him anyway, unable to keep the corners of her mouth from turning up slightly.
"I love the way you dress as Lina, though." Tony said, his tone making it beyond obvious that he was joking.
"And I thought your Navy uniform was quite sexy…" she trailed off and pretended to look embarrassed, "Oh wait. That was McGee wasn't it?"
Tony was about to drag it out into a full-fledged banter, which felt more like foreplay than bickering these days when Lina's cover cell phone rang. They both stared at it for a second before Ziva mentally shook herself and picked it up.
"Hello?" she answered. After a pause she covered the receiver with her hand, and hissed, "It's him!" to Tony. She started speaking to him in Spanish that Tony couldn't follow, so he watched her facial expressions with a mounting sense of concern.
Ziva hung up the phone, and turned back to Tony, blinking in confusion. "He wants to have dinner." She stated, her brow furrowing. "I do not understand this at all. He was apologetic, and very sweet. Much more like I remember him nine years ago."
"When's the date?" Tony said, attempting to be casual, despite the tightness they could both hear in his voice.
Ziva swallowed and forced herself to look him in the eyes, unsure of why this moment carried so much weight. "Tonight."
Tony closed the gap between them with two steps and stood in front of her, absently hooking his index finger into the pocket of her skirt. "Please be careful." He whispered without breaking her gaze. She nodded slowly and leaned toward him slightly.
"I am not the same person I was nine years ago, Tony." She said, her voice as soft as his was. "I have much more incentive not to die."
He couldn't help but smile at her blunt delivery. "You better go tell Gibbs and Fornell." He said with a smile.
After she'd left Tony sat down to make the call he'd been planning since three minutes after Varnaz showed up.
"Ducky? It's Tony." He said when Ducky picked up the phone.
"Anthony!" Ducky boomed cheerfully. "How are you my dear fellow?"
"Peachy, Duck." Tony said.
"Ah…" Ducky remarked. "Your tone indicates that you are anything but. What's the trouble? Not enjoying Cartagena?"
"I was until about twenty minutes ago. It's this Varnaz guy, Ducky." Tony said, worrying for a moment that he sounded stupid saying this out, but shaking it off. "There's something off about him. Something that's just not right, you know?"
"Did Ziva tell you that?" Ducky asked.
Tony sighed with frustration he didn't realize he felt until just then. "Ziva hasn't said much of anything about him. Or what happened nine years ago, and I don't like it. There's something wrong here, Ducky, I feel it in my gut. And if I ignore it, and something happens…" he stopped before he said something he would regret and let Ducky fill in the blanks.
Luckily for Tony, Ducky was tactful, and although he knew full well the feelings that motivated Tony's concern, he chose not to vocalize them. "Go on." Was all he said.
"He showed up here this morning, which is weird in and of itself, right? It's too soon. We only set the trap for him last night. I mean, Ducky, he didn't even wait twelve hours. And when he got here, he was rude, and then he'd apologize, and then he'd switch right back." Tony paused, searching for the apt description. "It was like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. freakin' Hyde." He muttered.
"Hm," Ducky murmured, "That does seem odd, given his fascination with her during their previous encounter."
"She stayed in character the whole time. She mentioned he didn't seem happy to see her and Varnaz freaked out. Said the world didn't turn for her, or something. Then he apologized, told her she was charming. Then he called her a whore, and ten minutes later, he's on the phone, asking her to dinner." Tony paused, forcing himself to take a few calming breaths and relax. If he clenched his jaw any tighter it would break. "Something's not right, Duck." He repeated.
"I believe you're quite right, Tony." Ducky mused. "I'll need some more information to complete a thorough assessment, but my initial guess would be that Mr. Terizan has maintained a psychological fixation on Agent David for nearly a decade."
Ducky paused and Tony clenched his free hand into a fist. What ifs and worst cases were popping up in his head at lightning speed, each one more horrifying than the previous scenario. He shook the nightmarish images away and focused on Ducky.
"If that's the case, he has likely imagined all sorts of grand reunions between them and created a fantasy, which she shattered by not behaving in the manner he thinks she should. He is hostile toward her when she deviates from the version of her that he created; the version that fuels his obsession."
Ducky could practically hear the frown in Tony's voice when he spoke again. "Well that sounds nice and dangerous."
"Tell me, Tony, not to undermine your concern for your partner, but is there any reason you're particularly troubled?" Ducky asked gently.
Instead of answering immediately, Tony heaved a sigh that spoke volumes. "She said it herself just now. She's not the same person she was nine years ago, Ducky." Tony confided heavily. "I mean, yea, she's still got the moves, and the stealth, and she could kick my ass back to 1999, but she's not as willing to throw her life on the line, and even less willing to risk any of ours and that makes her vulnerable."
Ducky waited silently; there was something else hanging unsaid, and he wanted to give Tony the chance to say it.
"I'm mostly worried because of us." He blurted out suddenly. Ducky smiled and nodded to himself; Tony forged ahead. "Mossad, yea, you might die. Part of the deal, but not NCIS. I get the feeling she's trying to watch all of our backs, and not her own, or keep up this strength for us so we don't worry, or…something."
"Is there any way we could get more information on her mission nine years ago?" Ducky asked. "It may be helpful in establishing a more comprehensive profile."
Tony was silent for a moment in thought. What he was thinking was generally a bad idea, but it might be the only way. "I'll get back to you on that Ducky." He said thoughtfully, trying to decide who to call for this particular favor.
NCIS Director Leon Vance was worrying. He had been worrying since Gibbs and his team took off for Colombia. He had even been worrying at home, which did not make his wife happy. But Leon Vance had a gut feeling, and that did not make him happy. He preferred to rely on intellect and leave the intuition to Gibbs, but he couldn't help it; something was telling him to worry.
His cell phone rang intrusively, almost making him jump. Vance shook his head at his own anxiousness, and thought for the millionth time since Gibbs had left that he couldn't wait for this to be over.
"Vance." He said shortly.
"Director." Came DiNozzo's voice. Vance paused, surprised, wondering what had already gone wrong that had DiNozzo calling instead of Gibbs.
"Gibbs doesn't know I'm calling you." Tony told the Director. They were both surprised at the strength in his voice; his tone left little room for argument.
"What can I do for you, Agent DiNozzo?"
"I'm worried about Ziva." Tony said bluntly. "Something is going on with this Varnaz guy and she doesn't seem to want to tell anyone."
"Ask nicely." Vance suggested, ready to hang up when something in Tony's voice changed his mind.
"Director Vance, please. If you help me, it'll be a win- win. I watch my partner's back and your agency has a much better chance of preventing a terrorist attack if we have all the available intel."
Vance sighed; Gibbs had taught DiNozzo well. And damn it, the kid had a good point. "What did you have in mind, DiNozzo?" he asked dryly.
"I want a face to face with Director David, and I don't want Gibbs or Ziva knowing about it until it's over. They can kill me then, but I need to talk to him."
Vance was about to turn him down, but he knew the relationship between Tony and Ziva was at best edging toward intimate, but more likely already there. Frankly as long as they didn't cause any problems, he didn't care; it was Jethro's problem. But given what Vance knew, it was unlikely this wasn't every bit as serious as DiNozzo was making it out to be.
"I'll set up a satellite conference." Vance conceded.
Tony let out the breath he had been holding. "Thank you Director."