Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or any of its characters.

Chapter 26

"You put one foot outside that door Taylor and you'll think yourself lucky if you can sit down by Christmas."

Hesitating, Taylor looked back at her dad. He still looked relatively calm, so he could be bluffing, but it was too hard to tell. "Why?" She whined as she turned, but didn't move any closer to him.

His only response was to crook his finger at her.

Taylor glanced outside again, wanting nothing more that to be out there. "I just told you what happened didn't I?" She protested, before taking a step backwards towards the door. "It's not as if its something I'm gonna do again. Blowing up a tree is a once in a lifetime experience." She tensed as her father straightened up, well aware there was no chance of outrunning him.

"You've had your say. I think it's only fair I have mine, don't you?"

"Your hand said plenty already." Another step, this one left her standing right in the doorway. Taylor briefly checked her feet just to make sure she was still inside. She wasn't ready to commit to full blown defiance just yet. "I told you, I ain't gonna do it again.

"I know you're not." Even though he was agreeing with his daughter it still sounded more like a threat.

It was decision time. Either she made her break for freedom, or backed down and did as she was told.

Her dad still hadn't moved any closer. He pointed to the floor directly in front of him. "Get over here Taylor. NOW!"

Taylor backed down and obeyed the order. Thumbs hooked in the pockets of her pants she slowly and cautiously walked over to where he was pointing. When he didn't speak, Taylor reluctantly looked up at him, trying to determine if he was going to pounce. He didn't, just folded his arms and gave her a look to let her know she was lucky she'd made the right choice.

"Go wait in the living room."

"What for?"

"Doesn't matter what for, just do it!" Taking her by the shoulders he gave her a gentle shove in the right direction.

"Fine!" Taylor made her exit before he had the chance to tell her to stand in the corner.

o

Stretching out on the couch, still convinced she'd done nothing wrong, Taylor used the remote to switch the TV on.

"TV OFF TAYLOR!" Jethro's voice carried in clearly from the kitchen.

Taylor tutted, then hit mute. How would he like it if she told him not to drink coffee?

"RIGHT OFF!"

Sitting up, she peeked over the back of the couch, expecting to see her dad in the doorway, but he wasn't there, so she ignored the request and lay back down again. A few seconds later an arm reached over and took the remote from her hand and the screen went black. By the time Taylor pushed herself up to a sitting position her father and the control were gone. Forcing down the urge to say something she'd regret, Taylor kicked at the coffee table in front of her. That man wanted to control every f***in' thing she did. They all did. Closing her eyes Taylor tried to imagine what it would be like without anyone telling her what to do every minute of the day and night. The idea really appealed to her. Wasn't exactly going to happen anytime soon though, was it? Still, Taylor had no intention of backing down as far as the whole firework thing was concerned. That would make her feel guilty again, and she hadn't liked that, not one little bit, especially upsetting her mom. That had been tough. Taylor was used to shouting, threats and swats, but not tears. She kicked the table again before standing up. She'd almost made herself feel bad again. Enough thinking. Not wanting to waste time hanging around the house Taylor decided to find out what was keeping him.

o

Jethro wasn't impressed when he looked up from the newspaper to find his daughter standing in the doorway.

"How long do I have to wait in there on my own? I'm bored!"

Slowly, giving her the opportunity to return to the other room without him having to take her, he got to his feet. Taylor might not of had the sense to stay where she'd been told, but she was smart enough to stay out of reach. Or maybe not. He was right beside her now and she hadn't moved an inch. Instead she just glowered up at him as if he was the source of the trouble.

Taking her by the arm, Jethro led her back into the living room. This time however, instead of letting her sit down, he guided her into a corner, whispering into her ear before she had the chance to protest. "You'll wait her for as long as I tell you to." He was just about to leave her there when she spun around.

"Why should I?" Her hands went to her hips. "And what's the big deal with watching TV, huh? Wasn't hurtin' anyone. You just like tellin' me what to do! Well I ain't ….."

Jethro, his temper hanging by a thread now, applied his hand firmly to her rear before growling at her. "Do you really want to keep testing me when you're already in so much trouble?" This time, with the sting in her backside to help, Taylor seemed to recognize his rapidly decreasing patience and faced the corner again without any prompting.

After watching his daughter for a few moments to make sure she was going to stay put, he retreated to the kitchen to calm down and figure out just what was going on in Taylor's head.

o

Taylor had no idea why she'd just done that. She was still bored, only now she had a stinging butt to deal with too. Not wanting to earn another swat she stood still until she heard her dad walk away. She hadn't been alone for long when the phone in her pocket vibrated. Cautiously, checking over her shoulder to make sure her father hadn't returned, Taylor checked the screen. It was Lucas. He was still alive then. The message was short but easily understood. 'Tree 15 mins'

Checking it was still safe, Taylor texted back. 'prob grounded'.

Lucas's response was immediate. 'so am I come on think ferris ill b bk in dc b4 u get out again'

Lucas did have a point. She probably wouldn't see him again for months and months if they were both grounded. Wait a minute! Technically she wasn't grounded. But then she'd been told to stay where she was, and her dad was already mad enough. One last day spent messing around with Lucas would only be worth it until it was time to come home. Grounding would be the least of her problems then. Taylor continued to weigh up the pros and cons as Lucas persisted with his messages. Finally the decision was made. Staying right where she was, was her best option. Admittedly, the boring, cowardly one, but she reckoned she'd seen enough trouble for a while. With a sigh Taylor began her final message, but then froze at the sound of voices. Her mom was up. The guilt Taylor had felt the day before at making her cry returned with a vengeance. There was no way she was gonna be able to face her mom, she just couldn't! Suddenly Lucas's plan didn't sound as bad after all. Taylor reconsidered her decision, leaving only an empty corner and an open window for her father to find.

o

Lucas was waiting where he'd said he'd be, and looked relieved when he spotted Taylor approaching. Taylor was more interested in checking out the damage they'd done with their bomb though. It was impressive. Horrific, but impressive.

"You took your time!" Lucas complained. "I was startin' to think you'd chickened out."

"I'm here now aren't I?" Taylor caught sight of a small piece of fabric caught on one of the broken branches that littered the clearing. Kneeling down she picked it up and slipped it into her pocket. She'd seen enough. "Come on, we'd better get outa here. This is the first place my dad's gonna look when he discovers I'm not standin' in the corner. Trying to forget how much trouble they were in, Taylor gave him a shove, then took off running. "Quit wastin' time!" She called back. "This better be worth the shit we're gonna have to take tonight!"

Lucas grinned as he started after her. "Hey! Wait up! Where are we goin?"

o

"Oh you are in so much trouble!"

Taylor shot to her feet, dropping the cigarette Lucas had just passed to her. "What the f**k Vicky?" She lifted the cigarette off the floor of the boathouse they were holed up in. "You tryin' to scare me to death?"

Vicky smirked at her cousin. "Bit jumpy, aren't you?"

Taylor gave Vicky her best sarcastic look. "What do you think?"

Taking the cigarette out of Taylor's hand, she took a drag before passing it to Lucas. "Don't blame you for feeling nervous, the pair of you are top of Stillwater's most wanted list. They'll be putting your pictures on playing cards next."

"We are?" Lucas managed to get out between coughs. He looked as if he was about to throw up.

"Oh yeah, your dad's just as mad as Taylor's, and both are out searching right now."

"F**k!" Taylor said, almost to herself, then raised her head towards Vicky. "You gonna tell them where we are?"

"No, but are you sure it wouldn't be smarter just to go home now? You can't hide forever, and the longer you leave it, the madder everyone's going to be." Vicky couldn't understand why they'd done something so dumb. Running, that was crazy.

"Maybe she has a point Taylor." Lucas added, not feeling quite so confident or brave now.

"What do you mean she has a point? This was your f**kin' idea in the first place!" She couldn't believe he wanted to back out.

"I know, but ….."

Taylor turned angrily to her cousin. "Whose side are you on anyway?"

"I'm on your side." Vicky held her hands up in surrender. "What the hell are you getting so angry about? I just wanted to warn you."

Lifting her dad's lighter and the almost empty pack of cigarettes, Taylor stalked to the door. "You comin' or not?"

Lucas didn't speak, just shook his head.

When Taylor spun round and walked out the door, Vicky followed, catching her by the arm to stop her. "Wait a minute!"

"Let go of me!" Taylor snarled, pulling her arm away.

"What's really bugging you? There must be some reason why you ran. It doesn't make any sense."

Taylor didn't answer. She wanted to confide in Vicky, but just couldn't bring herself to do it.

"And what am I supposed to tell your mom and dad?"

That was it. Taylor had had enough. "I don't give a flyin' f**k what you tell them. I'll go home when I feel like it!"

Vicky watched Taylor take off. There was no point chasing her when she was in a mood like that.

Lucas came up behind her. "She's been in a lousy mood all morning. "You think she's gonna be okay?"

"She'll be fine." Vicky was hoping Taylor calmed down enough to realize the best thing to do was to go home and face the music, before the music found her.