Author´s Note

The tunnel idea came to me after watching a CNN report on Palestine boys, who are making tunnels to bring in food & beverages (and who knows what else). I am not making any judgments, I just took some information and worked with it.

I also want to thank the ones who read and reviewed my story, thanks for all your reactions.

Comments & language improvements are most welcome. Last night when I worked on chapter 3 the computer ate it, arghhh, don't ask me where it went, I don't know. So I decided to re-write it and it came out much better. Hopefully you'll enjoy.

Chapter 3

Ziva knew she had to be honest with him, she sighed and started to talk.

"Ever since Hamas and Fattah split up, Hamas has been building tunnels in order to bring in what ever they need, if it was just food, I don't think we would have stopped them so quickly. We found out that more and more weapons were brought into the region and we saw a huge increase in rockets being fired at us. We were ordered to investigate were the weapons came from, who received them, payments, basically we wanted to know everything"

Ziva took a deep breath and continued.

"One day my team and I noticed that a huge weapons delivery was taking place, we were ordered to stop it, a firefight broke out and the Hamas leader escaped fleeing into the tunnel. I went after him, but the problem with tunnels is, you just cannot hide anywere. So when he noticed me following him, he rolled a grenade to me……………I didn't get away fast enough, the tunnel blew up and I was buried under tons and tons of sand, it was everywere, my mouth, my ears everywere." Ziva shivered at the memory of that moment, the moment you just know you were going to die. "anyway after that I don't remember much, I was pulled out and rushed to hospital"

"how long were you in hospital" apparently Gibbs wanted to know everything.

"two, almost three months"

"How far along in your recovery are you"

"I have to report to the Israeli Embassy once a week with Doctor Moshe Cohen, so he can moniter my health and progress, and to see phsysioherapist in order to get my full mobility back."

"Why not go to Bethesda hospital, they have all the facilities there"

"Because then Mossad has to give out my medical details and how I got these injuries, and they are not willing to let any foreign agency know such details about any agent of theirs."

"when is your next appointment"

"this afternoon at 13.15"

"Good, I'll go with you"

"what" Ziva looked shocked. "You cannot do that"

"Yes, I can and I will, I need to know what my field agents can and cannot do" Gibbs wouldn't bow down on this, Ziva knew she couldn't talk her way out of this one.

So that afternoon Gibbs escorted Ziva to the Israeli Embassy where he met with Doctor Moshe Cohen. When Doctor Cohen ordered Ziva to remove her blouse so he could examine the wounds, Gibbs had no intention of leaving the room, both Ziva and Doctor Cohen stared at him when he said "You can stare all you want, but I want to see what the grenade did to her"

Doctor Cohen switched to Hebrew when he asked Ziva "If you don't object to him being here, I am oke with it, yess"

Ziva nodded, "it's allright" she answered back.

In order for Ziva to have some dignity while being checked out, Doctor Cohen left the room and came back with what appeared to be a hospital gown. When Ziva left the room, doctor Cohen kept staring at Gibbs, when Ziva reappeared she wore the hospital gown and had kept her jeans on as well. She was rather amused to see Doctor Cohen staring at Gibbs with a look that could only be descriped as total astonishment at someones total lack of protocol. Gibbs couldn't care less, he just wanted to know how bad Ziva had been injured.

In order for Doctor Cohen to check Ziva's wounds he had to remove the bandages that where there, when he had done so he turned around "I believe you wanted to see this"

When Gibbs came around the table he could see what the grenade had done to Ziva, her upper left side was covered with scars, most of them were bright red, her shoulder was the worst, and some of her left arm had also some damage done to it. According to Doctor Cohen most of the scars would disappear but some would remain.

"how about her mobility" Gibbs wanted to know it all.

"that will not be a problem, she'll get full mobility back, the only problem with Miss David is, she wants to much to quickly, she has to take it nice and slow"

Both Gibbs and Ziva remained silent for most of the way back to the NCIS headquarters.

"you know I have to put you on desk duty, don't you"

Ziva moaned, "yes, I know, I just don't like what comes with that"

Gibbs looked at Ziva "what do you mean"

"they will ask questions, questions I am not willing to answer just yet"

Both Gibbs and Ziva were on their way to the elevator at NCIS, when Gibbs turned around and asked "is there anything else I need to know"

Ziva looked at him, how could she tell him about that split second of total fear whenever she entered a dark room or the nightmares that were there almost every night.

"I don't like the dark anymore"she whispered. Gibbs took her in his arms. He knew, he understood.

Tony knew something was wrong the moment he saw Ziva and Gibbs leave the elevator, but before he could do or say anything, MacGee interrupted and told Gibbs a marine was found dead near a bar and they were told to investigate.

"let's go, Ziva stay here and check the marines background" Gibbs was back to his old self, barking orders left and right.

"uhhmm boss"

"yes MacGee"

"why isn't Ziva going with us" Gibbs looked at MacGee, "she has some issues to deal with before she can come with us again"

"issues, what issues ?" MacGee looked bewilderd, both Tony and Gibbs looked at one another, MacGee didn't know it yet. Tony was nearly whispering "MacGee, she got hurt pretty bad we nearly lost her, oke" MacGee turned a whiter shade of pale "oh, my god and I just said nothing, like I didn't care about her, I must ask her………….."

Gibbs stopped the elevator in mid air "oke, look you two, for now you will leave Ziva alone, she needs some time and space to get things back on track, so no questioning her, no playing practical jokes on her, just let her be, like I said she needs some time and space"

In the weeks that followed Gibbs got a weekly report on Ziva's progress by Doctor Cohen, she was getting better by the week, but no one other then Tony knew about the nightmares that would come back to haunt her. He knew that whatever had happened to her, it must have been bad. Ziva would never tell him anything, and he stood by helplessly whenever she would wake up screaming. He wouldn't do anything to harm her progress, but it was frustrating to him that she didn't confide in him. He wanted to help her so badly that his heart broke every time he saw the pain in her eyes after yet another nightmare, but for now he just loved waking up next to her, just simply looking at her whenever she did sleep peacefully. Give her time and space and she would eventually open up to him, but for now all he could do was just be there for her.