Author's Note: Well, like I said. Bunch of drafts, and they're very rough. Anyways, the 'M' rating will probably kick in next chapter. Some might not think that, but some might. Beside that, there's nothing else. Hope you guys enjoy the shivers and chills in this chapter!
Disclaimer: Nope. NCIS still doesn't belong to me. All I own is the story is the story and the OCs. =)
Ziva stared at the small window of the hospital cafeteria. The droplets of rain came profusely. They slid down the glass like tears and with the yellow lights coming from the streets outside, they also carried a distinctive glimmer with them. The darkness reminded her of the endless night that began a couple of hours ago. Soon, it would be over with, and another day would start. She sighed. She barely touched the food Tony bought for her. Honestly, she didn't feel like eating. Doing such would only provide distraction. She wouldn't be wary if something took her attention.
However, with the doctor's insistence after she was discharged, she resentfully convinced herself that she had to.
Tony held a forkful of spaghetti above its container while he looked at Ziva. "You're not going to eat your food?" he asked, smiling.
"I am not hungry, Tony," Ziva replied.
"You have to eat," Tony urged. Afterwards, he placed the fork in his mouth then chewed on his food hungrily. "We haven't had any since yesterday morning. After a while, those coffees from the vend machine didn't do good anymore."
"Yes," Ziva agreed absent-mindedly. Reluctantly, she turned towards the salad in front of her. She picked up the fork that lied beside it and used it to move the small, plump red tomatoes aside. Something was going to go wrong. She could just sense it. "We need to go back to McGee's room, Tony. Right now."
"Zhee-vah, reel-ax. Sha-rah an' hish puh-wrench 'r der," Tony chewed.
"What?"
Tony finished the food in his mouth before speaking again. " I said, relax. Sarah and his parents are there," he repeated.
"But we should also be there—"
"Ziva. Don't worry about Probie. Landon and his accomplice are caught already, so McGee's going to be okay," Tony assured her.
Ziva, despite what Tony said, was still hesitant. She nodded half-heartedly at Tony. The longer she thought of McGee, the more anxious and nervous she got. Something wasn't right. She could feel it. Once again, she glanced at the small window. More drops of rain were hitting the glass this time.
It was as if they were knocking on it, telling her not to waste any time.
Tony's phone rang all of a sudden, and it almost made both of them jump. "Who calls at 5 am in the morning?" he muttered irritably. After seeing Gibbs on the small screen of his phone, he frowned. "It's Gibbs," he told Ziva before answering the phone. "Hello?"
………………………………....
Mara Isaacs glanced at her watch. 4:50 am. They had been keeping her for almost six hours now, and yet no one had come to ask her these 'questions' they mentioned when they arrested her. Her late age was taking a toll on her, making her sleepy and a little bit pained at the same time. To what she could remember, she have not done anything wrong. She only had been doing what she was supposed to do.
As if on cue, Gibbs came in, a blank expression on his face. "Mara Isaacs," he said. "That you?"
Mara nodded. "Yes."
Gibbs took a moment to examine her feature. Her eyes had sunken lower. The wrinkles on her face were more distinct compared to when he saw her in the video from the prison. He also noticed how she appeared uncomfortable, vulnerable. "You were the nurse working with Landon?"
"Mr. Jake. Yes," she answered, nodding again when she recalled.
"You're the one who helped him escape then?"
"What? Escape?" Mara echoed, stunned. "Is this why you arrested me? You think I helped him?"
"We know you did."
"I didn't. I-I couldn't—"
"He told us that you were the one who let him out! See, he's not going to let you drag him down," Gibbs asserted, his tone escalating.
Mara could hear her heart hammering madly inside her chest. Her eyes stung with tears before she spoke again. "I couldn't have done what you're accusing me. I was—"
"And you even want to kill my agent? You threaten him then you pull out Landon to help you?"
"No!" Mara said, her tears now streaming freely down her cheeks. "Would you just let me finish?"
"No. You're done." Gibbs then stood up. "You've been done since you decided to plant a bomb in McGee's apartment."
"A bomb? What—"
"Agent Gibbs," Agent Samuels quietly called after opening the door a little. "Landon's here."
"Let him in, Agent Samuels," Gibbs replied then glanced pointedly at Mara.
Agent Samuels vanished from the door. "They're in there. Go," they heard him say.
"Ma…Mara's in there?" Landon asked.
"Yes. Go on."
With the agent's direction, Landon stepped inside the interrogation room. He was unsure whether to smile or not. He was glad that they caught her, because it meant that McGreggor would be safe at last. If Mara was out of the way, everything would be okay. Amy would be happy, and Agent Tibbs, Lisa and Tommy. Everybody. However, when he saw Mara, he only creased his eyebrows. There was a fleeting shadow of unfamiliarity that passed by his face.
For a split second, when Landon started to look back and forth from him to Mara, Gibbs felt uneasy.
"That's not Mara," Landon managed to say though astonished. "You said you got her. You said you…You didn't."
"What do you mean that that's not her?" Gibbs asked. "She is Mara Isaacs."
"Yeah, but I…"
"You mean you don't know her?"
"I've seen her a couple of years ago, but she's not the one," Landon said.
"Look. I think you got the wrong person," Mara interjected, "and that's what I've been trying to say. For some months, yes, I was in charge of Landon. But I've retired three years ago. I haven't been working for the facility for years."
A slight dread dawned on Gibbs. He could remember the video clearly, and the woman with them was the one he saw. The white wisps of hair, her mild nature, her face, it was all her. He could not have made a mistake.
"This is how she planned it, isn't it?" Landon smiled with disbelief. "She set me up. She killed that man and made it look like I did it. She helped me get away so I would be then one blamed and not her. That's why she let me in at that hospital. Mara told me that if ever I failed, she will finish it. She won't stop, Agent Tibbs. Not until he's dead."
Gibbs glared at Landon. There was that feeling lurking around him again, an anxious truth that hung heavily on his shoulders. It was telling him that something was wrong, and Gibbs knew he couldn't take any risks. If "Mara" had the determination to take off McGee by detonating an explosive, then she was the type of person who would carry it to the end.
Before hurrying out of the room, Gibbs drew out his phone and dialed Tony's number. When he left, Mara checked her watch again. 5:00 am.
………………………………....
"Hello?"
"Where are you?" Gibbs asked.
"Boss?"
"Tony, where are you?"
Tony furrowed his eyebrows, a little bewildered by the question. "What do you mean?" Tony laughed slightly. "We're still in the hospital. Actually, uh, boss, we were kind of hungry, we're in the cafeteria."
"No one's with McGee?" Gibbs asked agitatedly.
"His family's with him," Tony answered. Alarmed by Gibbs' outburst, he asked, "Is there anything wrong?"
Gibbs watched the elevator doors calmly slide open then, he rushed out of the lobby, through the copious rain, and towards his car. All the while, Landon's words replayed in his mind. This is how she planned it…That's why she let me in at that hospital. "We arrested the wrong person. The lunatic is still out, and she might just be in there."
Tony was dumbfounded while Ziva, seeing the shocked expression on his face, got the affirmation she feared.
………………………………....
Annah hummed joyously while she drove her small SUV. She have always enjoyed traveling through the rain. She loved the rhythm that raindrops make as they collide with the windshield, the coolness of the air that always soothed her, and the dimness it always came with. It had been a while since she felt that content, like she was doubtless of victory coming to her hands.
Carefully, she reached to the backseat. "It won't be long, Timothy. It won't be long," she whispered as she felt his fingers touch hers. She did not expect him to answer. She knew she was glad too, anyways. While placing back her hand to the steering wheel, she knocked down the bottle of chloroform that she used only a few minutes ago.
Annah ignored it. She only thought about her angel lying down at the backseat. "We'll be together," she said then, she smiled.
First of all, I was watching the "Monk" finale when I was speed-typing this, so please pardon the typographical errors! =) Second, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Next chapter, creepier things might happen so…
Please leave comments! I love them! =*