Good morning, my children... oh, today I feel strange... mixed feelings I have...
This is the last chapter... buaaaaaaaa!!! It went by so fast!
Anyways, as usual, I don't own anything blu bli blu...
Enjoy!!!
CHAPTER 12
Outside the building, several cars and vans pulled over in front of the 20 floors building and the raid team burst into the place.
Tony, geared up with his bulletproof vest, just like the rest of the team drew his gun out and rushed to follow the other in but Gibbs stopped him.
"What do you think you're doing, DiNozzo?" He asked
"I'm going to find Liz" Tony replied
"Not like that, you're not" He said and Tony frowned "You're not going alone, Tony… you've got your whole team here…"
Tony nodded and McGee and Ziva nodded to in support.
The 4 of them prepared their guns and ran into the building followed by Reznikov and his team.
They passed through several corridors, imprisoned many of Volkov's men but they couldn't find him nor Kirsty and Liz.
When they were on the 2nd floor, they separated to cover more ground.
Meanwhile, on the 15th floor, Kirsty was practically dragging Liz towards the next flight of stairs.
"I don't think I'm gonna make it, Kirsty…" Liz said panting
"No, don't say that… you can do it… I know you can… you're the strongest woman I've ever met"
"You're not to bad yourself… I'm really sorry I wasn't able to help you"
"You've helped me more than anyone I've known" Kirsty thanked her
"You better go" Liz said
"I am not leaving you here. Let's go!" Kirsty said and helped Liz up once more and rushed to the stairs but someone shooting at their direction stopped her
"You're leaving so soon?" Luka called from behind them
Kirsty turned around and Liz made her best to confront Volkov.
"Let her go, Volkov… she won't help you make a deal with them…" Liz said and then smiled at the shooting noises a few floors down "They are coming, Luka… this will be over very soon"
"Your stupid agency can't stop me!" Luka exclaimed with clear fear
"Wanna bet?" Liz asked and then, still smiling, she pulled Kirsty down to the floor
Suddenly, a large explosion resounded in the building and the floor they were in trembled and filled with smoke.
"Run, Kirsty, run!" Liz shouted encouraging Kirsty to flee
"What about you?"
"I'll be fine. Run!"
Kirsty nodded and ran but the amount of smoke didn't let her see a thing.
"Why don't you stay for a little while?" Luka asked sarcastically pulling Kirsty's hair, stopping her "Bitch! I should've killed you when I had the chance… just like I did with your stupid brother!"
He then punched her in the face making her fall on the floor completely unconscious.
Then, he strode to where Liz was and smirked down at her.
"Look at the great agent Hadley… I was right… it will feel wonderful to kill you" He said and pointed his gun at Liz
"Drop your weapon, Volkov" Tony yelled at him
Liz was able to see Tony in the middle of the smoke midst and couldn't help to smile.
Luka also smiled but at Liz.
"Great job, agent DiNozzo… seriously… I'm amazed…" He said still giving his back at Tony
"I will not say it again… put the gun down!"
"Uhmm… you know what? I don't think I will…"
And then, he pointed his gun at Tony and shot indiscriminately. Tony had to duck to dodge the bullets but one grazed his thigh.
Luka then grabbed Liz by the arm and picked her up. With the last bit of strength she had left, she kicked the gun from his hand and he slapped her once more.
"You've been nothing more than a pebble on my shoe since you took my case in England… but this will end today…"
Out of nowhere, he drew a knife out and stabbed Liz in the stomach with it. She widened her eyes in both shock and pain and everything started to go blurry. The smoke had begun to disperse.
"Goodbye, Lizzie…" He whispered into her ear while he pulled the knife out of her abdomen and then kissed her on the cheek as she fell to the floor
Tony saw everything from the floor and screamed as he saw Liz falling "Liz! No!"
"And now…" Luka walked to where Kirsty was after picking his gun up and grabbed her by the neck, picking her up "Wake up, Kirsty… I want you to see how the people you turned to for help die because of you…"
Kirsty opened her eyes and saw Tony crawling his way to Liz's immobile body.
"No…" She gasped
"Volkov! Let her go!" Gibbs commanded pointing his gun at him
"If it isn't the infamous special agent Jethro Leroy Gibbs himself!" Luka exclaimed holding Kirsty against his body pressing the barrel of his gun against her temple
Ziva and McGee arrived soon after and, just like Gibbs, pointed their guns at Volkov.
"There's no way out, Volkov. It's over" Gibbs said
"It's not over until I say it is!" He exclaimed and shot at the 3 agents who had to look for cover
"Liz… Liz… wake up…" Tony pleaded kneeling next to her
She then opened her eyes and saw Volkov turning around and aiming to shoot at Tony and kill him.
As fast as the pain allowed her, she drew one of the two guns Tony carried with him, aimed at Luka and shot him once, which was more than enough to kill him. The bullet went straight through his head between his eyes.
He let go of Kirsty and fell to the ground, dead.
Gibbs, McGee and Ziva rushed to where she was to check if she was ok.
"Kirsty… are you alright? Did he hurt you?" Gibbs asked
"No… no… I'm alright… Liz… she…" Kirsty looked back at where Liz was lying
"Liz! Liz… can you hear me? Please… hang in there…" Tony begged pressing the wound in her stomach as she started to cough blood "No, Liz, no!"
"It's ok, Tony…" She paused and gasped for air "I'm just glad you're safe…"
"McGee, call an ambulance!" Gibbs instructed kneeling next to Liz while Ziva and Kirsty stood next to them and McGee obliged "Liz"
"Gibbs… how's Kirsty?" Liz managed to ask
"She's alright… thanks to you" Gibbs replied looking up at Kirsty
"Good…" More blood continued to drain out of her mouth "I'm sorry…"
She smiled at Tony and then her eyes closed and her body went limp.
"No! Liz!" Tony shouted and started giving her CPR
In less than a minute, the paramedics arrived and continued what Tony was doing.
"Is she…?" Kirsty didn't dare to ask as Gibbs stood up and surrounded her shoulders with his arms
"No… she's alive…" Gibbs said trying to convince himself once the paramedics had taken Liz downstairs and into the ambulance.
Tony rode with her on her way to the hospital while the others followed.
The paramedics had immediately plugged her to a heart monitor but there was no pulse in her body.
"Please, Liz… please…" Tony prayed holding her hand "Please… I can't do this without you…"
The ride to Bethesda hospital took less than 4 minutes and once there the doctors and nurses put her on a gurney and took her to the OR.
Tony was taken, reluctantly to the ER to attend his leg and Kirsty was also taken there.
Ziva and McGee stayed all the time with Tony who was receiving several stitches on his thigh.
"Do you know anything from Liz? Is she out of surgery yet?" Tony asked for the 3rd time in less than 15 minutes
"No, Tony… not yet… she will be fine, you'll see" McGee reassured
"She had no pulse McGee. She was dead in the ambulance!" Tony exclaimed
"Sir, I'm gonna need you to calm down. I can't stitch you up if you keep moving" The young doctor said
"He'll be still" Ziva said and placed her hand on his shoulder "Right, Tony?"
"Ouch… yes…" Tony replied frowning
Meanwhile, 3 beds away, another doctor was disinfecting the cut Volkov had given Kirsty on the cheekbone after punching her.
"Are you ok?" Gibbs asked
"Yes… how is Liz?"
"We don't know yet… she's still in surgery"
"This was my fault… if I had told you the truth from the beginning… none of this would have happened" She said looking down, a few tears rolling down her face
"You did what you thought was the right thing to do… you fought to avenge your brother and I think he would be proud of you…" Gibbs said
Kirsty couldn't find anything to say and just nodded.
3 hours later, once they were all in the waiting room, the surgeon who had performed the operation on Liz walked out of the OR.
"Are you relatives or friends of Miss Hadley?" He asked them
"Yes… how is she?" Tony asked rushing towards him
"She's out of danger" He said and her 4 friends exhaled in relief "It was a complicated surgery since she was very weak and had been severely beaten. The knife scratched her intestine and went right into her stomach. We were able to stop the bleeding and to sew up the internal wounds" He paused for a very dramatic moment and then continued "She flat-lined twice but she is a very strong woman and did her best to make it through"
"She is…" Gibbs said
"Can we see her?" Tony asked
"Yes, but only one of you… you will all be able to see her but she needs rest" The doctor explained
Tony looked at Ziva, McGee and Kirsty and they nodded. He then turned to Gibbs.
"Tell her we send our love" He told his agent patting him on the shoulder
Tony smiled, nodded and walked into Liz's room.
After closing the door, he turned around and felt his heart shrinking by just seeing her lying on that bed plugged to what it seemed a thousand machines.
Slowly, he made his way to her bedside and once there, he held her hand and squeezed it.
"If I had believed you… If I had trusted you… you wouldn't be lying here… helpless…" He whispered and then felt how her hand squeezed his
"Who said I'm helpless?" She asked and then opened her eyes making him smile
"Hey!"
"Hey… how's your leg?"
"Better than your stomach, apparently"
"Then why do you look worse than me?"
Tony looked down in shame and felt how she tightened her grip on his hand.
"I should've trusted you, Liz…"
"Yes, you should have…" She replied "But so I should have" He looked up at her "I've lost so many partners and friends and loved ones while doing this job that I thought, if I told you or Gibbs or anyone else about my mission, you would get killed too"
"Liz, we might not be as good agents as you are but I think we can put up with a couple of fights by ourselves…"
"I know… and I'm sorry for distrusting you"
"I thought you were our enemy… do you know how bad that makes me feel?"
"I left you this morning without any explanation… do you know how bad that makes me feel?"
"Oh yes… we are yet to talk about that…" Tony warned "But before I forget, Gibbs and the others send their love"
"Thanks…"
"Why did you leave?" He asked a moment later
"I'm not entirely sure… I suppose I was scared…"
"Of what?"
"My feelings… your feelings…"
"Well, I can tell you last night felt good…" Tony joked and Liz laughed lightly
"Yes, it did… but more than good, I think the word is right…"
"It felt right?"
"Yes… I feel… right… when I'm with you…" Tony narrowed his eyes "I don't have a home, Tony… I haven't had one in a long time… and you… you make me feel like home…" She confessed
"Then… what you said this morning… in the elevator… about… you being in love with me…? Is it…?"
"True?" Even with the dim light of the room and Liz's paleness, Tony could see her blushing slightly "Yes, Tony… it is true… I love you"
"I love you too, Liz… I've loved you for quite sometime…" He opened his heart to her
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah…"
"Tony… come closer…" She asked and he leaned forward a little bit "Closer" She requested and he obliged "Closer" She said one last time and after he'd done it, she raised her hand and slapped him lightly in the back of the head
"Ouch! What was that for?" He asked rubbing the back of his head
"You've loved me for quite sometime and you hadn't said a word until you saw me on my deathbed?!" Liz exclaimed
"Well, you never said anything either!"
"Why don't you just shut up and kiss me?" She said smiling
He smiled back, leaned forward and kissed her tenderly on the lips.
Suddenly, the steady beep that the heart monitoring machine was making increased its rate and Tony interrupted the kiss.
"What was that?" He asked
"Nothing…" She lied blushing deeper than before, biting her lower lip
"Hmm…"
Again, he leaned forward and once his lips touched hers the beeping sound sped up once more. Tony parted again and smirked.
"Am I doing that to you?" He asked cheekily
"No…" She lied again
He did the same thing he had done the 2 previous times and the outcome was the same.
"I am! Your heart gives a concert whenever I kiss you! You're crazy about me…" He bragged and she back-head slapped him again
"Oh, shut up!" She said and then pulled the electrode off her finger "Let's try again…"
He laughed and kissed her again. This time, no sound interrupted them.
"That's better. Not having to be embarrassed by my own heart…" She said
"Sure…" Tony laughed with her
Outside, the room, Kirsty leaned against the wall and exhaled.
"What's on your mind?" Gibbs asked standing next to her
"Nothing…" She said starting to walk away
"Where are you going?"
"Home… I need sometime to think about… everything…"
She left the hospital and McGee approached to Gibbs who hadn't taken his eyes off Kirsty.
"What's wrong with her?" He asked
"She's confused…"
"About?"
"Her life… for the past 6 years her entire life has revolved around her obsession to avenge her brother… now that his killer is dead, she doesn't know what to do next… I know the feeling" Gibbs said and McGee remained quiet
Later that day, Abby and Ducky arrived to the hospital and after the 2 of them, Gibbs and McGee had entered to see her, Ziva asked them if she could have a moment alone with Liz. They said yes and they were left alone.
"Liz…" Ziva started
"Don't, Ziva…" Liz interrupted her
"No, let me say this…" Ziva said "Forgive me"
"No, forgive me… I was arrogant to believe I could do it alone… you were just trying to protect your friends… your family and I wouldn't ask less of you"
"A Mossad agent?"
"No… Ziva David" Liz answered giving Ziva the peace of mind she needed
A few days went by and after one last check up, Liz was discharged from the hospital and Tony took her to her hotel. They hadn't told anyone about their relationship and for the sake of Gibbs' rule #12 and Tony's job, they weren't planning on doing it anytime soon.
One day after being discharged, she went to NCIS office to talk to director Vance.
"Take a seat, agent Hadley" He said and she did so "How are you feeling?"
"Better, thank you… you wanted to talk…" She said going straight to the point
"Yes… I've received agent Gibbs' report on the case and a separate report on your… performance in it" He stopped for a second and then proceeded "After having a discussion with SECNAV and assessing agent Gibbs' request, we've decided to offer you the post of Affiliated NCIS Field Agent" Liz raised her eyebrows in surprise "You would still perform your duties as Special SAS Agent but you would also have an official post here with us… what do you say?"
"I say: I'd be honoured" She replied
"Good. I'll start the paperwork to complete your integration to NCIS" He said standing up
She mimicked Vance, stood up and shook hands with him.
"Welcome to NCIS, agent Hadley" He said shaking her hand
"Thank you"
She walked out of the office and headed to the bullpen, where Tony, McGee and Ziva were waiting anxiously for her.
"So… what happened?" Tony asked rushing to the stairs
"He wanted to talk…" Liz replied elongating Tony's suffering
"And?" He insisted
"And… he offered me the post of Affiliated NCIS Field Agent!" She exclaimed and her 3 new teammates congratulated her
"That's awesome!" Tony whispered into her ear as he hugged her
"I know… I can't wait to thank Gibbs for recommending me"
"You deserved it, Liz" Gibbs said behind her
She turned around and hugged him "Thank you. It means a lot to me…"
"As it does to us… welcome" He said smiling at her and then led her to his desk.
She saw him taking a yellow envelope out of one of the drawers and he then handed it to her.
"What is this?"
"Your CIA file" He replied and she looked up at him confused "Kort gave it to me the morning you disappeared"
"Should I ask why?"
"I don't really see the point… I didn't ask for it… and as you can see, I never opened it"
"Why not?"
"Because I trust you…" He said and Liz smiled as she put it back inside Gibbs' desk and he gave her a questioning look "Just in case you might ever feel like reading it…" Gibbs narrowed his eyes "I have nothing to hide… besides… you might need it sometime in the future…" She chuckled and winked at Gibbs "What happened with the investigation on Volkov?" She asked after a moment
"Reznikov and his team recovered all the data they needed to put many of Volkov's clients, contacts and colleagues behind bars…" McGee explained
"Have you talked to Reznikov?" Tony asked Liz
"He came to see me at the hospital before returning to Moscow… he told me they are still looking for Siraj Hārūn…"
"If they don't catch him, we will, Liz" Gibbs said and Liz nodded in agreement
"I'm going to give Abby the good news" Liz said heading to the elevator and Tony followed
"I'm coming with you" He said
They got inside and while the waited for the doors to close Liz turned to him and said "Look inside your right jacket pocket"
He did so and pulled a folded piece of paper out of it. He opened it and read the single word in it to himself.
"What is this?" He asked
"That's what the M stands for…" She replied smiling
And he smiled widely as the elevator doors closed.
That night, Gibbs was in his basement, sanding one of the sides of the 3rd boat he was building. He had been thinking about Kirsty since the day she had left from the hospital and he hadn't heard from her again. Then the doorbell rang.
"It's open!" He called and heard how the front door was closed. He heard the footsteps of the visitor getting closer and yet he did not turned to face the door
"Good evening, agent Gibbs" Kirsty said coyly
"Good evening, Kirsty…" He said finally turning around
"I… I just came to give this back to you…" She said putting Shannon's tracksuit on top of one of the tables
"You didn't have to…"
"Yes, I did… and… I want to apologize… for all the trouble I caused…" She said not able to look at him in the eye
He walked to her and stopped a few inches away from her.
"Never apologize… it's a sign of weakness… and no matter what you say, you are not weak…"
Then, without previous notice, he leaned forward and kissed her in the mouth.
It wasn't a declaration but it was the beginning of something and Kirsty believed that it was definitely the beginning of something good.
THE END...?
Oh dear... well, I hope you liked it and please have mercy. This was my very first NCIS story and the first time I posted something here... I'm a fragile creature... (yeah, right... ^_^)
So... just so you know, I'll be finishing the sequel either today or tomorrow, the latest. Remember it's gonna be a crossover with NCIS: Los Angeles!! Woohoo!! More cute guys!!! *puppy eyes*
Anyways, thank you so much for reading and for adding my story and me to your favourites and alerts.
I'll bee seeing you around very very soon!
Koo Koo Kah Choo! xoxo