AN: Thanks for the reviews guys. So I just watched the season finale and, let me tell you, I am SO not a happy camper. I won't share any spoilers but for the record, in THIS universe, that did NOT happen. Also, to the reviewer who said they were confused, please PM me and I will attempt to clear things up for you and also find out where I might be able to improve the story. If you do not do so, I will consider your review fratching and remove it since I specifically asked to be PMed about any confusion. I really do live for the reviews, but you can't just generally insult the story and have me be okay with it. That does me no good as far as improving either the story or myself as a writer.
MN: If AJ is mad about the finale, I'm pissed beyond what can be expressed here without having to change the rating of this fic. To those of you who have reviewed and/or PMed, thank you. We love hearing from you. Please always feel free to let us know specifically things that you loved, hated, or would have changed. We are planning on participating in NaNoWriMo 2013 and any input that helps us grow as writers before then is more than welcome.
"Junior, you in here?"
Tony cursed under his breath. He was seriously regretting having given his father a key to his apartment. Apparently ignoring the man's calls for a solid week wasn't enough of a hint that he didn't want to talk to him. Hell, he didn't want to talk to anyone. "Go away, Dad."
Far from listening to him, his father appeared in the doorway to his bedroom, further invading his space. "This place is a mess, Junior. What are you doing?"
Tony brought the glass in his hand up to his lips and took a long swallow of the amber liquid it contained. "At the moment? I'm getting lit. What are you doing in my apartment?"
The elder DiNozzo crossed the room and took the glass from his hand. "Apparently I'm saving you from one hell of a hangover." He sat on the bed next to his son. "Talk to me."
"Nothing to talk about. Had a bad day at work. Stepped on some toes. Vance had Gibbs put me in solitary for the weekend." Tony shoved to his feet, swaying slightly as the full force of the whiskey he'd consumed presented itself. He meandered into the kitchen and retrieved a second glass filling it from the bottle on the counter then moving to drop himself on the couch.
As soon as his rear hit the cushion, he remembered why he'd chosen to drink in his bedroom in the first place. There, on his coffee table was a framed picture. Ziva pinning him to a mat during a workout together. On his mantle there were more. Gibbs showing Ziva how to cast a line when the team had taken a fishing trip together. Ziva and Abby lighting a Menorah in Abby's lab the previous Hanukkah. The one she hadn't missed. Ducky and Ziva dancing together at the party they'd thrown for Palmer after the whole Harper Deering situation had been resolved. The entire team gathered on a picnic blanket ready to watch the Independence Day fireworks together.
In his living room, he couldn't escape her. Here, there was no chance of getting her face out of his mind for a single moment.
"When does the trial start?"
As his father once again sat next to him, Tony sighed. He studied the glass in his hands, no longer interested in its contents. "Monday."
"And then what? Will she be coming home?"
"Doesn't look that way. Jonas Thompson still has yet to speak a word since his arrest. Since they can't be sure he acted alone, she could still be in danger. The Marshalls will probably use the kid as leverage to get her to agree to stay in the program."
For the first time since his arrival, Tony looked at his father. "I warned her. Not to get involved with him. This never would have happened if she had just listened."
His father shrugged and threw back the remainder of the alcohol in the cup he'd taken from his son. "If she had listened, she wouldn't have been Ziva."
"Agent Fielding, this is a surprise. What brings you all the way to NCIS?" Tony knew he was eyeing the other man suspiciously, but he couldn't help it.
Over the course of the last week the FBI agent had been in almost constant contact with Ziva regarding Ori and the disappearance of his parents. The few times he had spoken to him instead he'd asked questions mostly about his partner, not the case. Now he had shown up, unannounced.
"We found Shoshi Kedar. Whoever took her kept her drugged, so she doesn't know who it was or where she was being kept. She managed to escape somehow, was picked up by a Good Samaritan when he found her wandering around outside of Bear Creek State Park. We've got teams going in to search the cabins and campsites. I came by to pick up Ori so I can take him to his mother."
Tony breathed a sigh of relief as he stood. "Ziva took him down to our forensic scientist's lab for lunch. Come on, I'll walk you down."
Gibbs kicked McGee's foot, waking him with a start which, in turn, woke Abby. He presented them with a pair of Caf-Pows. They both took pulls through the straw before he spoke. "What have we got so far?"
McGee tapped a few keys then turned his laptop so Gibbs could see it. "Jonas Thompson, 36. Born and raised in Alexandria. Divorced, no children. Parents both passed away when he was in college." As he spoke he hit keys on his wireless keyboard and the pictures changed.
"Has worked for the same ad agency for the last ten years. Perfect attendance record, no disciplinary action, good performance reviews."
"Is that it?" Gibbs took a sip of his coffee and grimaced. He'd settled for the junk from the convenience store and it was significantly subpar compared to what he usually got from the diner.
"So far. It took me most of the night to get through the employer's firewall. I'm still decrypting most of their files."
"Abbs?" He turned his attention to the forensic scientist as she shook her head.
"The forensics are solid. The gun Ziva pulled off Thompson is a match to the slugs found in each of our male victims. DNA confirms he raped each of the women. With Ziva's testimony that he had the gun in his hand, the case is a slam dunk on all ten counts. I've been helping sift through the data coming in from the ad agency."
"Keep it up you two." He turned and headed for the door to his basement. Ducky and Palmer had set up down there and he hoped they were having better luck.
Ziva crouched down next to Ori as the boy sat next to his mother's hospital bed. Fielding had promised her the pair would be placed into protective custody when Shoshi was released from the hospital.
"They won't stop looking for your father and the bad man that hurt your mother. And they are going to keep you safe." She pulled a card from her pocket and pressed it into his small hand.
"Keep this. If you are ever in trouble, call me, just like I showed you, okay?"
The boy nodded at her as he tucked the card into his pocket. "Thank you for taking care of me, Ziva. And tell Tony and Tim and Abby too for me."
She pulled him into a brief but tight hug. "I will. Be a good boy, Ori."
Once out of the room she watched him for a moment. Something didn't feel right, but she trusted Fielding to keep his word and keep the boy and his mother safe.
"Ziva, Ori. Nice to see you again. Please, have a seat." Marshall Bill Nichols was as detached as ever as he waved them into the conference room.
Ziva pulled a tablet from her purse and handed it to Ori once they were settled into their chairs. The boy immediately shoved the earbuds plugged into it in his ears and tapped the icon for a game he liked to play.
"That should buy us about half an hour of quiet from him." Ziva stared at the man across from her. She would definitely be glad when she didn't have to deal with the bland Marshall anymore.
Bill flipped open a file on the table before him and thumbed through the pages. "This shouldn't take that long. I trust everything went well with your appointment?"
She fought the urge to roll her eyes. He didn't need to pretend to care with her. "Yes. Everything's fine. Can we please just get this over with?"
"Right. Everything is set. I will be picking you up on Monday at 8am. Make sure you pack everything you need. You won't be coming back to Ohio after the trial. I've arranged a transfer point where you'll be moved to the supervision of another Marshall. He will take you the rest of the way into DC and head the protection detail assigned to you at the hotel for the duration of your stay."
Ziva glanced at Ori. He was thoroughly engrossed in his game. "And after the trial?"
For the first time in the six months he'd been her handler, Bill looked truly apologetic. "I'm sorry Ziva. He's still not talking. It's just not safe for you and Ori to stay in DC. We can't force you to stay in the program, but if you want to go through with the adoption, it's just not an option to go back."
Her gaze dropped to the table and she nodded. She'd known this was a possibility and she was prepared for it. "I'm going through with it. We can still finalize it after I testify?"
Once again Bill turned several pages in the file. "Yes. Everything has been filed with the family court the Marshalls Service uses in DC. It'll all be legal by the time you're relocated."
AN: Okay, now that we got that out, I'm going to bed. Next chapter will likely be up Friday.