AN: Some have you have expressed ideas about exactly where this is going and while you have hit some of the points, there are things coming that you have NO clue of yet. So hang on tight and enjoy the ride!
MN: This is going to be one of those angsty chapters I warned you about. Remember, it's all her. Not me.
"Gibbs, my office. Now!" Vance was pissed. The tone of his voice left absolutely no doubt about it. And he had every right to be. Shooting his senior agent a harsh look, Gibbs rose from his chair and hurried to the stairs.
He hadn't managed to release the doorknob when the Director's anger exploded. "DiNozzo is out of control! You need to fix this. Now."
"I wish it was that simple, Leon." He crossed the room and dropped himself into the leather armchair in the sitting area. After a moment's pause, his boss followed suit, sitting on the couch opposite him.
"This is about David, isn't it?"
"It's been seven months, Leon. Trial starts on Monday. Might help if he knew what was going to happen. Is she coming back?"
Vance sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face. "I don't know. The Marshalls are keeping their mouths shut about the whole thing. I can't even tell you if she's back in DC yet."
"We need her back. My team is self-destructing." Gibbs shoved himself from the chair and moved toward the door. "I'll do whatever it takes, Leon."
"You do what you have to do for family, Gibbs. Take the rest of the day. Tomorrow and the weekend too. Your whole team. Find a way to make this right."
"I'll be back in a few minutes, okay?" Ziva waited for the boy's nod before she stood and crossed to her partner and Fielding.
"So? Did he manage to tell you anything?" So far, she was rather impressed with the FBI agent. He seemed to recognize that Ori was a child and he couldn't push things too hard with him.
"He doesn't know anything. He said he woke up this morning and went to his parents' room. They weren't there. They weren't anywhere in the apartment. He was scared so he hid in the closet until he heard someone calling his father's name." She glanced back over her shoulder at the child.
"That would have been the coworker. I'm calling in Homeland on this. The family came here on a political refugee visa. So did two of the other missing couples. The disappearances may be related to why they fled Israel."
"Could Ori be in danger?" Ziva was glad Tony asked the question so she didn't have to.
"Doubtful. He was asleep in the apartment when his parents were taken. If they'd wanted him, they would have had him. Poor kid. I don't even know if Child Protective Services has anyone who speaks Hebrew."
Ziva's heart clenched. "Why doesn't he come back to NCIS with us? I can take him for a few days while you investigate. That way, if he is in danger, he will be protected."
Fielding looked from her to Tony and back. "We'll have to clear it with both of our directors. I'm willing to say I think he might be at risk if you both are."
Tony's eyes locked with hers and she pleaded with him silently for a moment. "I'm in."
Fielding pulled his phone from his pocket. "Great. I'll get the ball rolling."
Ziva looked back once again. "Is it alright if I take him to get something to eat and a cold drink?"
Fielding looked from her to Tony once again then nodded. "Sure. Just don't go far. And leave your cell number with one of my agents." With that he turned and walked away, bringing his phone to his ear.
Ziva turned back toward Ori, but Tony reached out and took her by the elbow, stopping her. "Ziva, be careful. You know this is the job. That's it."
"I know. But right now 'the job' is a scared little boy who has no one to look out for him but us."
Gibbs looked around his living room, trying to gauge the reactions of his team to what he'd just said. Ducky was the first to speak.
"What you're saying, Jethro, is that we have three days to help make the case iron clad and figure out how much danger she'd be in if she came home."
"Exactly, Duck." He continued to stare at his couch where Abby sat sandwiched between McGee and Palmer. He could almost see the smoke coming from her ears as she considered what he was asking.
"And Tony's not here because?"
"Because he can't be objective, Abbs. If it really comes down to making the call that it's not safe, I don't know that he could do it. And we need to all be together on this."
The group returned to contemplative silence for several minutes. Then Palmer shrugged. "There's not really a question here, is there? Of course we do it. What's the plan?"
The other members of the team were nodding their agreement. "Alright. McGee, I want everything you can access about the case and Thompson. Hack, lie, code crack, whatever. Abbs, once he gets you the forensic reports, go over them. Make sure the FBI techs didn't miss anything. Palmer, review the autopsy reports. Look for things the original ME may not have been. Duck, get me a psychological profile of this guy. No one's been able to figure out what made this guy do what he did. Let's change that. We work out of here. Nothing goes through official channels. And no one talks to DiNozzo."
"Ori, this is my friend, Tony. He's going to take us to get something to eat. He does not speak Hebrew so if you want to tell him something, tell me and I will tell him in English, okay?"
The boy nodded at her and squeezed her hand tighter. Tony smiled at him gently before looking at her. "One of the Unis told me there's a kosher deli on the corner a few blocks away. I figured that might be the best place to go. He's probably been there before."
"Good idea." She gave Ori's hand a gentle squeeze. "Have you been to the deli before with your parents?"
He nodded as he walked beside her. "Yes. It's the place my Ima and I can go without Aba. They speak Hebrew there. Ima and I don't speak English but they are trying to teach us."
"Ori, hurry up! We are going to be late." Ziva looked up from the bottom of the stairs as the boy came rushing into view and down the stairs.
"I'm right here."
She caught him by the arm as he tried to hurry by her. "Uh uh. What are the rules?"
Ori toed at the floor, his eyes cast down. "We are in America. We speak English. And if we don't know how to say what we are trying in English, then we ask."
She squatted to bring her face level with his and used a single finger to tilt his chin until he looked at her. "And why is it important to speak English?"
A small smile toyed at the corners of his mouth. "So I can go to school in Autumn."
"Right." She straightened and pulled his coat from the hook in the hall, handing it to him. Once they were both bundled up they exited the townhouse into the crisp February air.
They were several blocks away before he spoke again from his carseat in the back. "Why did you talk to me in Hebrew last night?"
"Because, Pitzl, you were scared. And I know, when I'm upset, talking to someone in Hebrew calms me down. Making sure you knew you were safe was more important than practicing English last night." She glanced up at the mini van's built in mirror to see him looking out the window.
"Oh." After another moment of silence he spoke again. "Where are we going?"
"I have to go to the doctor. Then we are going to see Bill." Another glance in the mirror told her he was frowning at the mention of the US Marshall. She couldn't blame him really. The man wasn't at all good with children.
"Why do we have to see Bill? I do not like him."
Ziva sighed. "I know. But remember what we talked about? Next week I have to go tell some people about the bad man that hurt your Ima and Aba. Bill is in charge of making sure we get there and have somewhere to stay."
In a near perfect imitation of her, Ori sighed. "Okay. But I still do not like him."
AN: I know this is all making perfect sense in my brain, but if it isn't coming across that way, please let me know. Not everything is meant to be fully explained yet because of the split timelines, but if you have questions, please ask via PM.