Thank you all for your reviews and alerts and favorites. I'm really glad you liked the first chapter, and I hope that the rest of the story lives up to expectations!
Several of you asked about how far along Kensi is in her pregnancy and whether or not she and Callen are married. I have actually intentionally left those details a little vague because they may come up in some later scenes that I haven't quite finished working out yet. Also, as you will see from this chapter, there is a little twist in time that affects a few things. I hope the story still comes across okay.
Thanks for asking, and thank you again for reading!
-I-
"Breanna!"
The little girl had just swung a baseball bat high above her head, angrily preparing to smash the front headlight on one of the plastic playground cars. She turned abruptly as she heard her name bellowed across the schoolyard, her silky brown hair flying around her shoulders and her piercing blue eyes flashing with suspicion.
"Breanna, put the bat down and come over here!"
Her teacher sounded serious now. Reluctantly, Breanna did as she was told.
"Ooooh, Breanna's in trouble!" came the taunting voice from inside the playground car.
She quickly lunged for the bat again, and the little boy immediately leapt out of the car and scurried away.
Breanna glanced back at her teacher and debated disobeying for a moment, but curiosity got the better of her. Standing next to her teacher were two tall men who seemed to be watching her every move.
As she approached, she looked up at the men, and both of them smiled warmly. Breanna decided that despite their intimidating builds, she liked their smiles.
"Breanna, how many times have I told you that we do not go around bashing the headlights out of playground cars?" The teacher let out an exasperated sigh and turned to the men next to her. "I'm so sorry," she apologized.
"That's all right, ma'am."
One of the men knelt down to Breanna's level, looking straight into her blue eyes. "Breanna, my name is Sam Hanna," he said. "I'm an NCIS agent. And this is Deeks. He works with us, too."
"NCIS?" the little girl asked.
"Naval Criminal Investigative Service."
"Naval Criminal Investigative Service," Breanna repeated.
Deeks grinned at her. "Sharp kid," he said. "So hey, uh, why were you beating on that car over there?"
"Bobby wouldn't let me play," Breanna said angrily. "He said girls couldn't play with cars."
Deeks glanced over at the playground car whose headlights had indeed been smashed to pieces. "I don't think Bobby's gonna have a problem with that anymore," he said wryly.
Deeks' expression suddenly grew serious as he happened to catch a glimpse of two men approaching from the other side of the playground cars.
"Uh, Sam, we got two guys in black sunglasses…"
"I see 'em." Sam stood up and turned to the teacher. "Can you take the children inside?" he asked quietly. "Leave Breanna with us. Act normal. Just like it's the end of recess."
The woman looked at him worriedly but nodded, and when she blew her whistle, the children scampered to her side. As they filed into orderly lines and disappeared into the school building, Sam and Deeks led Breanna to the far end of the playground, shielding her from view while keeping a watchful eye on the other men.
"Breanna, I need you to stay with us," Sam said quietly. "Right next to us. Can you do that?"
The little girl nodded, as she took Sam's hand and clutched it tightly.
The two men in sunglasses had now passed the cars and were making their way further onto the playground, speaking softly to each other, their attention clearly focused on Breanna.
Sam clicked a few buttons on his phone, trying to remain inconspicuous as he snapped photos and strained to hear any parts of their conversation.
"You understand what they're saying?" Deeks asked under his breath.
"Nope," Sam replied. "A little rusty on the Russian...you?"
"A lot rusty," Deeks admitted.
"We come for the girl," the first man suddenly called out across the playground. Now he spoke in slow, halting English.
"She's not available," Sam informed him.
The man paused to converse quietly with his partner, but Sam and Deeks didn't take their eyes off them. As both men reached into their trenchcoats, the sunlight glinted off two shiny metal barrels.
"Get down!"
Sam tackled Breanna to the ground as the men fired wildly at them. The little girl cried out as a cascade of bullets screamed over her head and clanged off the perimeter fence.
"Cover me!"
Sam leapt to his feet and exploded out of the playscape, with Deeks at his back, both of them returning the fire. They only had to shoot off a few rounds before the Russian men quickly retreated to the parking lot, shouting at each other in angry voices.
"Deeks!"
"We're good!"
With Deeks safely guarding Breanna, Sam raced out to the curb in pursuit. He spotted the two men already fleeing at top speed inside a black car, and he fired a rapid round of bullets at the vehicle, putting a considerable number of holes in the side. But the car didn't stop. As the tires squealed around the corner, making a clean getaway, Sam could see that there were no plates, and he lowered his gun in frustration.
He immediately whipped out his phone. "Eric, two guys in a black car, no plates, heading south away from the school. Sending you photos of them now."
Sam was still punching buttons on his phone as Deeks and Breanna quickly made their way up to the parking lot.
"You get 'em?" Deeks asked.
"Nope." Sam sounded annoyed with himself. "Sending photos to Eric. She okay?"
Deeks nodded, and Sam looked over at Breanna. She was shaking slightly, but she still looked remarkably composed for a little girl who had just been targeted in a shootout.
"Come on, let's get her out of here."
They quickly escorted Breanna back to the Challenger, and as Sam opened the door for her, Breanna looked up at him a little worriedly. But when he smiled at her and motioned inside the car, Breanna's concerns vanished, and she clambered into the back seat.
"Where are we going?" she asked, as Sam slid into the driver's side.
"You'll see when we get there, B."
"B?"
"Yeah," Sam said with a chuckle. "You like that name?"
The little girl tilted her head, as if she were contemplating the name. "You can call me B," she finally said.
"That okay with you?"
The little girl grinned. "Yeah."
It wasn't long before they pulled up to the boathouse, and as Breanna entered the building, her eyes went wide with excitement. "Where are we?" she asked.
"Somewhere safe," Sam explained calmly.
Breanna immediately hopped up on the couch and made herself comfortable, although concern suddenly clouded her pretty blue eyes. "Sam, when can I go home?"
"I don't know, B," Sam replied honestly. "It might be a while."
"Or it might not."
Sam spun around at the voice behind him. A little lady had just stepped out of the shadows, and Sam knew that the situation must be serious if she had come down to the boathouse.
"Mr. Hanna," she said. "A word, please."
Sam glanced over at Breanna. "Uh, B, why don't you stay here and hang out with Uncle Marty for a while?"
Breanna looked up at Deeks suspiciously. "Uncle Marty?"
Deeks pretended to be slightly hurt. "Hey, what's wrong with Uncle Marty?" he asked. "You know that Uncle Marty knows how to party, right?"
Breanna looked at him doubtfully.
"Okay, come on, kid," he said, ruffling her hair. "How are you at card games?"
As Deeks plopped down on the couch next to her and dished out a deck of cards, Sam made his way over to Hetty.
"How is she, Mr. Hanna?"
"Doing as well as any kid can after being shot at this morning."
"Have you told her?"
Sam shook his head.
"She has to know some time," Hetty insisted.
Sam sighed. "I know, it's just a lot for a six-year-old to take in, Hetty."
"I understand that, Mr. Hanna, but she is not just any ordinary six-year-old. Have you forgotten that she is Callen and Kensi's daughter?"
"No," Sam said quickly. "How could I?"
The two of them looked over at Breanna. The little girl had just identified the queen of hearts in Deeks' card game, and her blue eyes sparkled with delight, as she giggled happily and twirled her wavy brown ponytail. Whether Deeks was letting her win or not, there was a certain familiar quality to her dazzling smile that both Sam and Hetty were happy to see again.
"The resemblance is uncanny, isn't it?" Hetty asked, almost reading Sam's mind.
Sam chuckled. "Yeah."
"Hey, guys?"
Sam looked up as the giant computer screen flickered on, and Eric's image faded in.
"I just ran facial recognition off the photos that you got at Breanna's school."
"You get anything?"
"Yeah. They're Russian. Just entered the country two days ago."
Sam frowned. "So they're back."
Eric nodded. "Yeah. And when I checked out the security cameras around Breanna's house, guess who I found?"
"Same guys," Deeks guessed, walking over to the screen to join them.
"Where's B?" Sam asked.
Deeks motioned to the couch. "Sacked out."
As Sam noticed the little girl curled up on the couch, he couldn't help but smile. "Just like her father," he muttered.
"Same guys," Eric confirmed triumphantly, bringing Sam's attention back to the screen. "There was a camera next door that caught them staking out Breanna's house."
"So they know she's Callen's daughter," Sam grumbled, "and now they know how to get to her."
"Uh, so where is Callen?" Deeks asked.
"Off this case," Hetty announced.
Deeks couldn't hide his surprise. "Off this case?" he repeated. "But she's his daughter?"
"Which is precisely why Mr. Callen has been removed from this case," Hetty said matter-of-factly.
"They knew Kensi was pregnant," Sam said quietly. "But they thought her baby died with her. Took 'em six years to figure out that she didn't. And now they're willing to use her to get to Callen."
"Why?" Deeks asked. "Callen doesn't even mention the fact that he has a daughter—"
The look on Sam's face shut him up quickly.
"Mr. Deeks," Hetty interjected. "Whether or not Callen acknowledges that he is a father is not up for debate here. As I recall, Callen alone made the decision to place his little girl in a home to give her a life that he could not give her. Unfortunately, because she carries his bloodline, she is also extremely valuable collateral."
Hetty looked at both men solemnly. "Mr. Hanna, Mr. Deeks...Breanna's house. Now. Take her with you."
Sam and Deeks knew that meant the discussion was closed. They both nodded and obediently headed for the door.
"Eric?" Hetty turned back to the screen and spoke in a commanding tone. "Call Callen."