Short but sweet as goes the saying. A small chapter to let you know I plan on finishing this story but life keeps me pretty busy in the summer! Please review if you like my story.
Sorry for those who find it hard to follw. I'm a complicated person with a vivid imagination and writing in a language that is not my mother tongue. I try to stick to the real facts as much as possible, but I admit; I sometimes bend the truth a bit to fit my purposes. Also, for this story to make sense, you need to be a follower of the TV series. Have a nice and hot summer ... in Québec we are still freezing!
Chapter 9 - It's Story time!
Tony and Tim faces looked as if they had been kicked in!
Sharon dared, "Ziva, think we got to them … big times."
Tony slowly worded, "If what you just said was a joke, I'm going to personally kick your "derrières" or as Sharon's father gave me permission to do; I'll ass whup you girls!"
Ziva squeezed Tony's hand, "Not a joke! I would never play with words in such a dire situation."
Tim asked, "Ziva, why now? If you guys had that 'code' stuff, why only use it now?"
Ziva replied, "Because it's only a couple of words. Twitter has a limit of 140 characters, that brevity makes us write tweets in a concise fashion. Codes between spies are pretty much the same; get to the point without an onlooker being able to decode it. Tim, I'd give you a long phrase and it would not take you long to decode what I'm actually writing. Simply switch letters or numbers, the 'popularity' of vowels, the language syntax and voilà … text decoded. Eyal is shooting this at us now because someone (I'm guessing Sharon) found a way to give him a clue that we are onto Ari2."
All looked at Sharon as she whispered, "He gave me the opening when he said that he'd like to finish what he started (with me). I answered, 'Eyal, I can only say ; I look forward to getting to know you better but I will understand if you pull a disappearing act. Hey, I'm Catholic! I know that sometimes it is best to 'disappear': We, the people, live and die; Christ died and lived!' I had my hand on his wrist … his pulse shot from 50 to 150 in a second flat, but he kept a poker face. The guy is one hell of a spy!"
Tony dropped his shoulders as he outed, "And you're only telling us this now!"
"Well, excuse me … told you the most important; Eyal purposely let me feel that capsule and then Ziva came out with the decoding signal he sent her…"
Tim asked, "Ziva how did Eyal signal it to you?"
Ziva smiled, "Tim, let's just say, 'It happened and I got it loud and clear. That is a piece of intel that is on a need to know – it's between Eyal and I. Those secrets must be kept secret... get my drift?"
Tony interrupted, "OK we get that part!What words did you come up with?"
Ziva showed him a piece of paper where four letters were written, "ARIQ"
Tony whispered, "Hey, don't get me wrong, but those four letters can mean many things."
Sharon's face went blank, "Ziva, we might be wrong! Eyal asked me if I liked to read. I said yes. ARIQ is the name of the main character of a book I read once; The Kraken King."
Tim added, "From Meljean Brook. I also read that book. Sharon, can I borrow your iPod?"
With a couple of clicks, Tim read, "Author Zenobia Fox has become famous for writing about the exploits of her adventurer brother Archimedes. After four kidnapping attempts, Zenobia has hired guards to protect her, which will come in handy since Zenobia is traveling across the wilds of Australia as a favor to an old friend. But it doesn't take long for trouble to surface as their airship is attacked by marauders. During the attack, Zenobia is rescued by Ariq, aka the Kraken King. Because of her brother's previous run-in with Ariq, Zenobia keeps her identity a secret, but as they face growing danger and adventure at every turn, their attraction blazes. Can it survive the obstacles between them?
That rescue ship belongs to the Kraken King … or at least that is the name that follows his reputation. Members of the town that he founded call him Governor. His friends and family call him Ariq.
The story takes them to a part of Australia known as Krakentown, a place that serves as a refuge for smugglers and revels. Zenobia quickly recognizes Ariq as the infamous rebel known as the Kraken King. She fears that if he finds out who she is, her brother will be in danger, so her plan is to leave town as soon as possible. The problem is that Ariq is torn between how much he likes her and how much he suspects her, so he's not letting her go that easily, thus Zenobia's mini adventure goes from planned and safe, to exciting and unpredictable.
Zenobia's abusive childhood, coupled with various kidnappings and unwanted advances from fortune hunters, has created a woman whose walls are so high and thick, we are unsure who exactly Zenobia Fox really is—a writer content to sit quietly on the sidelines, or an intelligent, intuitive woman who wants her own.
Named for his kraken like grip, Ariq hides his much larger agenda. Ariq has his own secrets—he's a former rebel who left when the war stopped being about the people and more about the wants of those in charge, and he fears Zenobia has been sent to spy on him.
The heroine also has many secrets and the Kraken King (one of his many titles) is more than a mayor of a town that kills a lot of the krakens.'
Tim concluded, "The author published it in 2010 in an 8 parts serial novel. From what I read, I can say that, in some ways, Ziva = Zenobia and Ari and our Gibbs are a mix of Archimedes Fox & Ariq … we dig down on the plot of that book and we will find some answers! Too many coincidences with Ziva, Ari and Gibbs's lives for it not to be the mother of all clues."
Tony's mouth opened and it stayed that way for a bit.
He tried to speak, "This is…"
Sharon interrupted, "The last clue! I'm extrapolating, but hear me out; Ari's safe house is somewhere in Australia (Krakentown). That's where he's been hiding out … at the end of the world! How fitting; A dead man in no-man's land ( colloquialism: Down Under). A perfect safe place! It's a known fact that if we find a spy's personal safe house, we find his 'raison d'être'. Ziva, Eyal is one hell of a brilliant spy! Tim, you've written a novel, then you're familiar with that world. Could you find out where the real Krakentown is?"
Tony outed in a very low-key voice, "This is just too much for little old me! How in the hell could Eyal pick a story where the two main characters have the same pronoun initials; Ziva/Zenobia and Ari/Ariq & Archimedes! Plus facts resembling Ziva, Ari and Gibbs's lives! Mind-boggling … no … it can't be! I prefer Ari Q (Q for Quantico)."
Ziva spoke, "I'm with Tim and Sharon. Quantico is a fortress and Ari could never get through security. He's good but … he's a dead man but still an enemy of all agencies (NCIS, CIA, FBI, etc.). He can't be here, it's impossible. Tony, Eyal was always … brilliant. That's his trademark. He's a genius, always was. He's using us, each one of us, zooming in on our strong suites and strong sides to make us solve this puzzle. Eyal knows he has to play his cards right because Ari is as clever as he is. Plus, Ari had the advantage of being one step ahead. As for the story ... coincidences…."
Sharon eyes rounded and Tim looked at her, they had the same thought at the same time as the both cried out:
"No such things as coincidences - Ari2could be the real author behind that book; like Zenobia is writing for her brother!"
Tim continued, "Ari 1 died in 2005 … that book was published in 2010, the year Ziva became an America citizen (and 'died' as an Israeli!)! Ziva, Ari2 is writing and fictionalizing both your lives and some of Gibbs. The more I remember that book the more I can see you, Ari, Gibbs. Would even add Tony as the one fighting for your..."
Tim's face came red at his last words!
Tony looked at Tim and said, "That because Ari2 is doing exactly what you did with Deep Six. Remember where that got us?!"
Tim bit his lips but Sharon asked, "Where?"
Tony answered, "Tim's second novel, Deep six - Rock Hollow was our lead to solve a couple of murders. An obsess fan of McGee was acting out the murders in real life exactly as they were to be featured in the pages of his book. Since our Timmy was using real life 'persons' to build his story, the guy easily ID Tim's characters and killed a couple of them and his final 'kill' was to be our very own Abby!"
Sharon looked at Ziva, "Ziva, did you and Eyal talk about Tim's books?"
"Yes, a lot. Eyal read both novels and laughed at how close Tim's characters were to our NCIS real-life team…. He often joked; Your McGee is not very subtle with his story plots. Sharon, do you think….?"
Sharon whispered, "Think we all need to read that book ASAP! I've read it but not with the right 'eye!"
To be continued!