I do not own NCIS or any of the characters on the show. It makes me really sad to have to repeat that over and over again. This chapter didn't turn out exactly the way I had envisioned it, but it's important to what is coming next. Good or bad, let me hear from you. I hope you enjoy the next chapter in our journey…
No Tears
No more tears now; I will think upon revenge. -- Mary Stuart
Eve woke early and quite abruptly, her heart pounding in her chest. She felt a bit odd but chalked it up to having slept for the first time in almost a month. The room was silent and dark; she lay there for a minute just feeling the silence, absorbing all of the sounds of the night. She finally calmed down when she could sense no threat and took a deep breath as she tried to relax against the mass that surrounded her. Tony had somehow managed to wrap his entire body around her like a second skin; his arms held her tight against his chest, and she could feel the gentle caress of his breath against the back of her neck.
She settled her body against his; she could feel the tickle of his chest hair against her back through the thin shirt she was wearing, and she fought the two separate instincts. One instinct was to turn over and lose herself in his warmth and the other conflicting one was to get as far away from him as she could. It was an infuriating paradox to a woman who was used to controlling everything about her life. If nothing else, the things that had been done to her in that room had taught her a lesson in humility.
She hated the feeling of not wanting to be near Tony. She loved everything about him and had always loved lying next to him with nothing between them; yet now, every time he touched her she wanted to fly out of her own skin. Their relationship had always been very physical, but they had barely touched each other in a month. It wasn't his fault. He had been patient, loving and had tried to help her get over the incident. She took a deep breath and sighed to herself. No, none of this was his fault, but he'd sure as hell had to deal with the fallout.
Eve squeezed her eyes shut against the tears that threatened to come. She wanted her life back, and as she lay there and thought about it she realized that there were several things she could do. One was to go back to work as soon as she could get cleared for field work. Once she was cleared for field work then she could put the next part of her plan into play. First though, first she had something more important to do and that had everything to do with the man holding her so tightly.
She eased her body around until she was facing him directly and then she placed the gentlest of kisses on his lips. Tony woke as soon as he felt the pressure of her lips on his and opened his eyes to find himself face to face with Eve.
"What was that for?" His voice was low and rough with sleep.
She said nothing, just stared back, mesmerized by the emotions she could see in the green depths of his eyes.
"Evie, what's going on here? Tell me what you need from me,"
She slowly extended her hand and began to trace the planes of his face. His skin was warm and pliant beneath her fingers, and as she left his face and began to caress the rest of his body with tentative strokes of her fingers he closed his eyes and exhaled heavily.
"Tony…" She paused, fighting the urge to roll away from his proximity. Intellectually she knew that she could kill Tony and barely leave a mark on his body; she knew she could defend herself if necessary, but trying to deal with the memories of that warehouse had her head all screwed up. Her skin was screaming at the close contact, her stomach was knotted up, and her mind was filled with white noise telling her move away. She took another deep breath to push back the memories and moved even closer to him.
Tony's breathing became more ragged as she draped her body over his. He could feel the heat from her body, the gentle caresses she was subjecting him to were driving him mad, and he itched to reach up and taste the skin of her throat. It had been a month since they had made love and his body had responded intensely to her invitation. He kept a tight rein on his self control; he didn't want to push her since this was the first time she'd initiated any intimate contact since the kidnapping. "This isn't fair; don't tease. Tell me what you want; come on, you've always been able to talk to me.
"I want…" She sat up suddenly, straddling his waist, and stripped her t-shirt off in one quick motion. "I want you."
Tony's eyes dilated at the sudden exposure of her creamy skin, the green iris turning black with arousal, and he pulled her tightly against his body, his lips seeking hers. Once he was sure she wasn't going to fight to escape he rolled over and pinned her underneath him then began to kiss and caress until she couldn't speak coherently. Tony smiled triumphantly to himself as he pressed her further into the mattress and proceeded to make love to her until they were both exhausted and unable to move.
Two hours later they were lying amongst the sweat dampened, tangled sheets, wrapped around each other closely enough to share the same skin. Tony was sleeping; she could feel the steady rise and fall of his chest under her cheek and could hear his heartbeat as he slumbered. She wanted the comfort of sleep, but her body wasn't ready to give in yet to her exhaustion. She finally felt clean and whole again; she had replaced the memories of the attack with new ones that wouldn't haunt her.
She had decided that she was going back to work, and she knew that he wasn't going to like it. It wasn't permanent, once she had done what she needed to do she was going to turn in her badge to John and take up one of the other numerous agencies who had courted her over the last several years. She wanted, no needed, to be here in DC, and it was time to do something about that. First though, first she was going to kill Jeff Davis. She knew without being told that her agency had plans for their former operative, and those plans would take him out of the country to capture some of his less savory contacts. All she needed was five minutes and it would be over. If she could get to him when he was overseas well then, all the better for her; no pesky civil rights to worry about. Tony wouldn't approve…of that she was certain, but she had no intention of putting him at risk. It would be better for all involved if it looked like John had simply sent her back overseas to work.
Eve pressed her body even closer to Tony's, feeling his arms tighten around her torso. She sighed in contentment and felt like purring. It had taken time, but she finally felt like she wasn't going to break into a million pieces. She closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
The burley instructor stood still as he watched the line of federal agents prepare. He took a deep breath and shouted, "Shooters on the line…FIRE!"
The air filled with the sounds of a line of federal agents emptying magazine after magazine into the paper targets set up in front of the line. Tony focused his attention on the image tacked in front of him and slid into a zone as he fired one shot after another. He felt…hell he couldn't describe how he felt this morning. It was amazing...even with the lack of sleep. Since the team had no new case, Gibbs had decided to put everyone through their paces this morning and had dragged them all to the firing range for some practice.
Tony emptied his second clip and waited for the command to holster his weapon. He stood there, patiently, whistling to himself as Gibbs checked each target to see how each of them had done. Per his usual he had gotten a great score, and was ready to head to the gym for a serious workout.
He hadn't wanted to come to work that morning. It had been an enormous struggle to drag himself out of their bed once he'd awakened that morning to find her sleeping so peacefully. He had watched as she slept for a few minutes before deciding that he didn't have the heart to wake her before he left. His and Eve's reunion the previous night had been perfect. He'd missed her, missed their physical connection, and had been relieved that she had finally felt safe enough to take the next step in her recovery.
Once they were finished at the range Gibbs took them all back to the gym for a thorough beating. Tony knew he was going to have some new and interesting bruises, but he had done a good job of holding his own against both Gibbs and Ziva as they sparred. All in all it had been a good morning.
After all of the excitement of the morning, Tony finally settled himself at his desk with the files of several cold cases in front of him. In lieu of a new case Gibbs had them studying the old files looking for anything the original agents might have overlooked. He grimaced as he opened his second file and found an unsolved rape homicide from his first year at NCIS. He glanced up to the sky…someone up there was not happy with him. Why else would he get a rape case to look at? He sighed and began to read the file again.
Special Agent Tobias Fornell looked at the man sitting across from him and tried unsuccessfully to hide his disgust. Jeff Davis, former covert operative and current traitor sat there calmly and waited for the other shoe to drop. He was aware that surviving the stab wound that Agent DiNozzo so lovingly gifted him with was pure luck, and so he waited, waited to find out exactly what his agency wanted with him. He had known John Maxwell his entire career, and he would bet his life on the fact that the Agency wanted his overseas contacts. He smiled at the FBI Agent sitting at the table with him and decided how best to play out the hand he'd been dealt. He leaned forward.
"Fornell. How are things at the Hoover Building?"
Tobias gave him a hard eyed stare and shrugged. "The same, nothing changes much there."
"May I ask you a question?" Davis decided to do a bit of fishing for information.
"I suppose, it will kill time until your attorney, the Attorney General, and the others get here to speak with you."
"How is Agent Dupree doing?"
Fornell's eyes went cold as he thought about the damage done to that woman. He was not giving this psycho anything. "You'd have to ask Agent DiNozzo that question."
Davis wheedled, "Come on. Surely you heard how she's doing. Tony DiNozzo is not going to speak to me. Hell…he just might try to kill me again."
"I don't blame him. You're lucky you survived. Knife wound to the gut…nasty business…Ah, here they are."
Davis glanced up at the door to see his own attorney, the Attorney General of the United States, the Director of National Intelligence, and CIA Director John Maxwell enter the room. The men crowded around the small table and the Attorney General pulled out a sheaf of papers for Davis' attorney.
"Here's the agreement. If Mr. Davis gives us his overseas contacts then we will take the death penalty off the table."
Davis blanched in alarm. He'd not realized that the Attorney General wanted to seek the death penalty. He glanced at his attorney in question, but Maxwell's hard tones filled the room.
"Don't be stupid, Jeff. You know treason is a capital offense. You're lucky they're willing to give you life. The kidnapping and torture of one of your own…you son of a bitch…you're lucky I just don't lock you in a room with Agent Dupree and let her finish this…that was my first instinct. Fortunately for you we need your contacts. Sign the goddamned papers and let's get this over with."
He looked at his former director and could see why the man had been such a formidable spy. His gaze was cold and promised death. Jeff Davis accepted the paper and pen, leaned over the table and signed his name on the document.
The DNI smiled. "Good. Remember, we own you now. You will do whatever we want or this agreement is null and void. You will begin immediately trying to make contact with your people. Once you set up a meeting we'll take over." The tall man turned and walked from the room followed by Fornell, the Attorney General and Maxwell.
Davis sat at the table with his attorney for a minute more before the guards came and returned him to his cell.
Gibbs leaned back in his chair and took a sip of his ever present cup of coffee. Each member of his team was working industriously on cold case files since they didn't have an active case yet. He kept his gaze tight on DiNozzo as he read through the file Gibbs had placed on his desk. He had known it was a rape-homicide and would probably be slightly uncomfortable, but he wanted Tony to work through any issues he might have with rape before they got called to an active scene. He knew it was unorthodox, but he was trying to protect his senior field agent from any discomfort or embarrassment in the field.
Tony could feel Gibbs' eyes on him as he perused the file. He was certain he knew what Gibbs was up to. He was grateful for the concern since they had not had a call out for a rape since the incident. He was certain he could do his job effectively, but somehow knew that he would have a whole lot more sympathy for the victims than he had ever had previously.
He had been working for hours, skipping lunch and dinner as he worked his way through the case one more time. He looked up and realized that somehow the entire day had passed while he made phone calls and spoke to old witnesses. He and Gibbs were the only two left in the bullpen. His computer beeped to remind him to check email. He opened the program and smiled when he saw one from Eve, but that smile turned into an immediate frown when he read the contents.
Tony,
I went back to work today. I'll be at Langley for a week at least prepping for my qualifications. I know you're pissed, but I need to get my life back in order, and work has always been a mainstay for me.
I'll call you later tonight.
Love,
Eve
He gritted his teeth and swore under his breath when he finished reading her message. "Shit!"
Gibbs glanced up in his direction again and asked in a quiet voice, "Everything alright, DiNozzo?"
"Yeah, everything's just peachy." The sarcasm dripped from his tone. He finally sighed in a weary manner then almost whispered, "She went back to work today."
Gibbs could feel the tension radiating off of the other man, but he kept his tone mild when he replied. "That's good, isn't it? I know you didn't expect her not to."
Tony sighed loudly in frustration and replied, "Yes and no. I knew she'd go back to work somewhere; I had hoped it wouldn't be back at Langley. Wishful thinking on my part I know, but after everything she'd been through I had hoped she would want to do something less dangerous."
"Talk about it tonight."
"We can't she's at Langley for at least a week prepping for her quals. The only reason they'd keep her there is if they were also reading her in for a mission. I think she's going back out in the field. Christ! I don't know if I can deal with this…"
His tirade was interrupted by Fornell's appearance in the office. "Can't deal with what, DiNozzo?"
"Nothing for you to concern yourself with Fornell." Tony turned his eyes back to the computer screen and began to type out a reply to her email.
Gibbs stood up and walked over to his old friend. "What do you want, Tobias?"
The FBI Agent looked at both men and wished he didn't have to give them this information. "The AG made a deal with Davis today."
Tony's attention was again focused on Fornell and his announcement. "WHAT? They're giving that bastard a deal. You've got to be fucking kidding me!"
"Sorry, no. They are. The DNI wants his overseas contacts; the CIA wants his blood. Where's Agent Dupree, I went by your apartment to give her the news in person and she wasn't there."
"Eve's at Langley."
Fornell turned a ghostly shade of pale. "When did she go back to Langley?"
"Today."
Gibbs finally spoke up. "What's going on?"
"Jethro, the CIA is going to take Davis out of the country to capture some of his contacts. We can't have a rogue agent out there wanting him dead."
"Fornell," Tony practically spat his name out. "She's a training officer now. She's not likely to get near any op that her agency is setting up, especially where Jeff Davis is concerned." Even as Tony said the words he wasn't sure if he believed them. He knew she would kill Davis in a New York minute if she got the chance.
Fornell just shook his head. "I'll tell you something kid, and don't quote me on this. I wouldn't blame her or you if you went after him. Remember, if you tell anyone I said that I'll deny all knowledge."
Tony finally smiled at the older man. "Yeah, I'll remember that."
John Maxwell took a good look at Eve as she sat across from his desk. "You're sure that you're ready to go back to work?"
"I'm going insane with nothing to do. I'm ready. I just need a week or so to prep before redoing my quals."
"If you're sure, then go to your quarters and settle in. You can get started tomorrow morning."
She flashed a smile that didn't reach her eyes as she replied. "Yes, Sir."
She stood and walked from the room headed for her temporary quarters. Her mind filled with just one thought. Stage one is complete, on to stage two.
