Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS: Los Angeles.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed Chapter 1. This chapter is very paraphrased, mostly because I couldn't write everything fast enough. I also did one part as a flash back. I tried to follow the canon of three episodes from the first season entitled "Missing", "Found" and "Hunted".

Chapter 2: The Stages of Hetty's Heartbreak

"Missing"

She panicked when Eric told her there was an Agent Assistant Alert. Dom was undercover. He was good and getting better at his job. It seemed to come easy to him and with Callen's help, he was getting better. No one on the team could really pinpoint the exact moment things went awry except for Dom. Instinct is a large part of undercover work. The best assessment of the situation at hand comes from the agent living it. Even those listening in and watching can only imagine what is going on in the agent's head, can only imagine what that agent sees. An agent missing. She had several of those over the years and they had always been found. So would Dom. However, the heartbreak of the event happening, never got any easier.

"Found"

Two months. It had been an excruciating two months. They worked cases they didn't want to work because they had no choice. They had to be grown ups and realize that the world still revolved and crime didn't stop. If they had the chance to choose, those two months would have been spent looking for Dom. With two months of serious concentration, they would have found him and their team, their family would be whole again. Then the video came in. Dom was sitting in a chair, hands behind his back with a Jihad background behind his head. There was Arabic music playing and a black bag covering his face. His captors, who kept their faces covered, spoke Arabic. His face was beaten, dried and fresh blood all over, his left eye almost swollen shut. But he was alive! Dom was alive.

Hetty called in every favor she could, making threats, begging for help in some cases. She couldn't lose a team member. Each one was hand picked and was therefore extremely necessary for the team to function. They never gave up; she never gave up on finding him. They couldn't; Dom depended on them. She even had a Navy ship just a stone's throw away from the coast of Morocco, ready to assist. Their suspect led them to the Palace Theater, causing confusion. Kensi found the Jihad background and the chair from the video. More confusion. Hetty's stomach felt ill at the fact that Dom never left U.S. soil. He hadn't even left the city.

Mo had found some sense of compassion and had given Dom a key in his food. A key he used to unlock his handcuffs. He ran, right into Sam. They headed towards the roof and were ambushed. Hetty tried as much as she could to breathe normally. Just a few more minutes and he would be safe; they all would be safe. Her breath quickened at the crack of rapid gunfire. Her whole body stiffened, anxious for her agents to be safe. Where is that damned helicopter? Then she heard those five dreaded words, agent down, repeat, agent down. Which agent? Which agent? Why is no one answering? She could hear Sam's voice, asking Dom to stay with him. She could tell he was performing CPR. Oh, my God. It's Dom. Please God we just found him. Then silence, broken only by Eric's voice asking what was going on. The sad and vacant reply from Callen was "Dom's gone". The shock travelled through the team. Callen and Sam first, because they were sitting right next to Dom. Kensi, next as she was sitting at the top of the stairs leading down to the roof. Then the Nate and Eric in the comm room. Hetty's heart dropped into her stomach. She could barely breathe and nearly stumbled out of the room. No, not Dom. We just found him. We just found him! She tried to make it to her office but her knees wouldn't let her. It took all the strength she had to just hold on to the wall.

The building was quiet as her agents returned from the field. Oh, it was full of people, but the other employees had realized what had happened on the rooftop. They were stunned, shocked. Although most didn't know Dom, some not even sure if they had ever seen him in the building, they showed respect for the team he worked with. They showed respect for the man he was, the job he did and how he died still protecting his country.

Sam and Callen reviewed what footage Eric could bring up but it was useless. The same conclusion was reached; nothing more could have been done. They did what they could, while they could. Dom knew as he felt his life leaving him that his team came for him, they never gave up their search. And now he could rest in peace knowing that he died in the presence of friends, a family like no other, instead of a Jihad camp where no one cared or knew his name.

The hour was late and Hetty had talked to enough people; she was tired of talking. Director Vance, other agencies, news crews. The most important call she'd made all day, next to the ones she made to help in the rescue was to Mr. and Mrs. Vail. She had only made this call one other time, to Agent Sullivan's family. Somewhere in the government agency she worked for was someone who did these types of calls all the time. She couldn't see how they did; this one was tearing her up inside. This is one part of the job she hoped she would never get used to doing.

As she walked into the bullpen area, she saw the sad, tear-streaked, heavy shoulders of her team. She didn't even have the strength to comfort them. Callen handed her a folder, everyone's reports on the day's events. His was finished and on top, unusual for him. He hated paperwork. She sighed and prayed for some words to say.

"Today was tough. There's no need to sugar coat it. We did what we could. My prayer is that if you ever have to experience any days like this again, that they are few and far between. Non-existent is the best-case scenario. I've spoken with Mr. and Mrs. Vail. They have thanked us for what we did do. They will be arriving sometime tomorrow. I will work with them on arrangements for Dom. There will possibly be a viewing on Friday and services on Saturday. Please check your e-mail. Now, today has been the Monday from hell. Go home and I don't want to see any of your faces until Thursday. Understood?" They all nodded yes and started packing their things to go home. "Good night."

When she arrived home, she thought of what tea she could drink to soothe her nerves, release the stress of the day. There was none. However, there was a gentleman by the name of Jack Daniels from Lynchburg, Tennessee, who did invite her to relax. And she cried as she did so.

"Hunted"

First, there was Agent Sullivan in 1999 and now Agent Vail, 2010. Some would say only losing two agents in a career is stellar, a worthy achievement. Even in eleven years, is a feat to be envied. I say that's two agents too many. I know what I must do. There is no exception. It breaks my heart, but it must be done. Operations Manager Henrietta Lange reached into her desk drawer and pulled out an envelope.

"This isn't over Hetty," came the words from Director Leon Vance.

"I'm afraid it is for me Leon." she replied, walking away.

There was no way Vance was going to accept her resignation letter. Was there blame to put on for this incident? Probably. Was it all to be put on her? No. There was plenty to go around and not all of it belonged to NCIS. The fact that the U.S. Army had the prisoner that the terrorists wanted and told no other agencies was a huge one. The greedy LAPD officer was another. He always had faith in her team, just like he did Gibbs's. Sure, both teams' methods were a little unorthodox and scary at times, but the job was always done and as close to the rules as possible. He knew the LA team stepped up its game when Dom went missing. He knew they would find him. Moreover, they did and they rescued him. What he wouldn't give for all of his teams to be that good.

Hetty was in her office, packing things into boxes.

"This is unacceptable."

"Why not? An agent died on my watch and I should take responsibility for it."

"This is the same letter you gave me when Agent Sullivan died. All you've done is change the name and date." She sat behind her desk and looked at the NCIS director.

"I choose, I asses, I train. I invest time, stock and heart and they die. They die." She sighed.

"Two Hetty. Two have died."

"Leon, I'm not cut out for this job. I just happen to have the capacity for it."

"Hetty, how long have we known each other?"

"Too long."

"Then you know that if I ever thought you weren't capable to doing this job- this choosing, training and assessing- that you would have been replaced a long time ago? People like you and Gibbs make your positions incredibly hard to fill. I hope I die before either of you so the headache of finding your replacements will belong to someone else. Besides, there's plenty of blame to go around."

"I know and I'm accepting my part."

"And where are you going to work? This is your life. This is what you do."

"I don't let the death of one person determine my occupational desire."

"But you are." He said.

A little while later Callen came into her office, or the chaos that was now her office. Hetty had been packing. She was putting away tea sets and books in boxes. Things were in stacks and piles, ready to be put away.

"Mr. Callen?"

"If you think you're the only one responsible for Dom's death, get in line. It starts behind me and Sam." He turned and walked out. He sat at his desk remembering the conversation he had with the director earlier. Vance had showed him the envelope. Callen guessed it was her resignation. It wasn't fair for her to give it.

"You think she really wants to resign?"

"Do you?" Vance asked, looking at him. The agent shook his head. "She's being the good leader, taking responsibility. She keeps things so close to her vest."

"Yeah. She sews them into her vest and covers it in Kevlar." They both chuckled, watching the employees work. "This place would fall apart without Hetty."

"That it would Agent Callen. That it would."

Hetty looked around the NCIS office. She would miss the hustle and bustle. She would miss the antics of Agents Hanna and Callen, the swift computer skills of Agent Beal. She would miss the talks with Nate and she would miss Kensi, the lone agent lady who was most definitely a force to be reckoned with. She would suggest finding another female agent to replace Dom. Ultimately it would be left up to the new Ops Manager. And the team. She returned to the office to finish packing and G Callen walked in holding a bottle of liquor and two glass tumblers.

"How about a drink to your pending retirement?" He asked, sitting in a chair in front of her desk. He opened the bottle and poured them both a drink. "I gotta say Hetty, I'm going to be jealous." He sat back in the chair. "You get to sleep in late and go on long lunches with your friends. Canasta."

"Director Vance already has my letter." She said.

"What letter? You mean this one?" He said waving the envelope around. "Umm, not anymore."

"Did he give it to you?"

"No, not exactly." He handed it to her. She took it and placed it back into the drawer.

"Thank you Mr. Callen."

"Now, if anything should happen to me Hetty," she gave him an evil stare. "Hetty, if anything should happen to me, I need you to grant me two requests."

"And what would that be?"

"Make sure someone takes care of Eric, if we're still together and don't you dare give the director, Vance or otherwise a resignation letter. I won't let you or anyone else take the blame and torture yourself like we have been for the past few weeks."

"Put it in writing and I will make sure it will be followed." They each raised their glass and toasted.