So I know I went Missing in action for awhile and I am sooooooooooo sorry. My life has been hectic with working full time and going to graduate school full time. Not to mention I have been having some family problems and health problems. But anyways, I am back! And I know I had promised you guys two more chapters but since you guys have waited sooooooooo long, I have decided that I am going to write more than two chapters for this story as an apology for your wait. I am going to do my best to update every Saturday and Sunday (my two days off from work).

Enjoy!

Kenzie

Nell had only opened the door a crack when Deek's appeared slamming the door shut. Gun shots could be heard hitting the metal door, "Nell, basement now!" Deeks yelled as he relocked the door.

"I have two more out back." Kensi hollered from the kitchen.

"I can help." Nell offered. Deeks shoved her towards the basement and pushed her in without answering. As the door to the basement shut, Nell could hear bullets hitting the windows.

Nell paced the basement listening intently for signs that would tell her what was going on upstairs. All she could make out were some screams and gunshots. She couldn't make out who was screaming, so all she could do was hope that it was not one of her team mates. Nell had paced so long that she was beginning to sweat and her heart was pounding so hard that she swore it was going to come out of her chest, when the door finally opened.

"Nell, we're leaving." Kensi said.

"What happened? Are you guys okay?" Nell asked hurriedly.

"Not now, grab your suitcase and lets go." Kensi ordered referring to the suitcase Callen had brought from his house.

Nell was about to open her mouth to argue, when she saw Callen standing behind Kensi, "Nell, hurry up."

Nell picked up the suitcase and hurriedly made her way up the stairs. When she reached the top she saw blood on the floor and a body lying in the doorway of the kitchen, she hesitated looking at the body.

Callen took the suitcase from her hand and nudged her forward, he started to tell her not to look but then he remembered that Nell had seen plenty of dead bodies while being out in the field. She had also handled herself well when she had been taken hostage. He knew that if it came down to it that Nell would be able to take care of herself, but that did not mean that he had to like it.

Deeks was standing out front talking to someone who was wearing an NCIS jacket, he smiled at Nell as they walked passed.

"Where are we going?" Nell asked.

"We're just moving locations that is all." Callen replied not wanting to go into too much detail not knowing who was all around to eavesdrop.

"So the way we are solving my problem is to keep running? Callen that is what I wanted to do this morning and you guys would not let me."

"We are not running Nell. We are hiding you and keeping you safe so that we can take him down. There is a difference. We're not running to hide and avoid him. We are placing you in protective detail so that we can attack him at the right time." Callen explained as he opened up the door to his car and motioned for Kensi, Deeks, and Sam to follow himn in the other car.

Callen got into the driver seat once throwing Nell's suitcase into the backseat, "So, I have been told that you went to open the door without even looking to see who it was?" Callen asked not even giving the young analyst a look.

"Callen, I thought it was you. Kensi had said that she would see you in a little bit so I just assumed…" Nell knew it sounded stupid as she spoke but she could not help it because she couldn't change what had happened.

"I can't be mad at you because you should not have been out of the basement to even have the opportunity to open the door, I will take that up with Kensi and Deeks later. But I will tell you that you are never to do something like that, I honestly thought you would know better." Callen said and Nell thought she heard disappointment in his voice.

Nell wanted to tell him that a small part of her knew the only reason she had made the rash decision to open the door was because she had gotten excited even thinking of the possibility that Callen was the one at the door. But she thought better of it, that would mean admitting that she was letting her relationship or their thing affect her objectivity and had left her blind. She knew that if she admitted that there would be no way that Hetty would continue to allow them to work together, "You're right. I should have been more cautious. I'm sorry." Nell answered.

Callen did not answer instead he let the silence linger until he felt Nell had had enough time to think through everything that had happened today, "We are about ten minutes away from the safe house, but I am going to drive around and make some circles and stuff to make sure we don't have any tails." Callen explained as he did a U-turn. Nell nodded and Callen continued, "This safe house also has a basement and that is where you are going to stay. The basement has a hidden room, so if they do happen to find us, we will be able to go to that room and they shouldn't be able to find us…it's kind of like the room of requirements…"

Nell laughed upon realizing that Callen had just spoke of Harry Potter, "You read the books?" Nell asked.

Callen ignored her, "There is food in there and stuff so that we could stay for a couple of days….if need be the room also has access to a tunnel that allows us to travel underground. It takes us a mile up the road and into another safe house. That safe house has a car and things, so that if we need to make another getaway we can."

Nell sat looking curiously at Callen, she had heard rumors of some of the safe houses being connected by underground tunnels but she had not really believed it at the time, "Who is all going to be staying there."

"All of us will be staying there. Two of us will be stationed with you at all times and the other team will be out looking for Michael Carlson. Once we find him, we should be able to find Jason and put all of this behind us." Callen explained, it was not often that all four of the agents would stay with the person in protective custody, but since it was one of their own they had all wanted to stay with her and support her.

"Isn't there anything that I can do?" Nell asked, she hated feeling like she wasn't doing anything to be of use.

"Yeah there is one thing…Try to stay out of trouble and out of harms way." Callen said thinking back to the escape and her opening the door.

Nell rolled her eyes and then turned her attention to the window. She wished he would talk about what was transpiring between them, so her head would stop spinning. Was he only treating her this way because he felt sorry for her, or did he find it attractive that she was a damsel in distress? The third option she buried underneath all of her other thoughts because there was no way that Callen had fallen for her.

Callen wanted more than anything to know what Nell sat thinking about as she stared out of the window, he realized he still had her cell phone in his pocket and he reached down grabbing it, he reached across the car and handed it to her. As her hand brushed his Callen felt the familiar surge of electricity that radiated throughout his body every time they touched, "Nell, do you trust me?"

Nell recovered from the shock of his touch and looked at him confused, "Of course I do."

"Then you need to start letting me inside of your head, you need to start letting me in on your secrets and you need to stop wanting to be so independent and let me take care of you…or there is no way our thing will work."

Nell looked at him questionably her heart racing, "What thing?" she asked innocently enough.

"You and me being together."

Nell sat in stunned silence, so Callen had fallen for her.

"It's not that I mind that you want to take care of yourself, it's the way that you are going about it. You can take care of yourself without having to be stupid. Sometimes being strong is admitting that you need help and accepting that help. If you trust me and if you want to be with me then you are going to have to stop being stubborn and learn to depend on us to help take care of you. I'm not going to keep chasing after you and forcing you to allow us to help. You should want us to help." Callen went on.

Nell knew that he was right, "Okay."

"The first step to this is taking this medicine Nate gave you. I already got it filled all it requires is for you to take it." Callen said and upon seeing her face he went further, "After I was shot Nate put me on medicine to help take the edge off. It allowed me to be me again and I'm not ashamed that I had to take it because it helped." Callen knew that he was lying but hoped that it made the young woman feel more comfortable about taking it.

Nell could not see any signs that Callen had been lying, but he was a trained agent and would be able to hide that well. She groaned, if being with Callen meant that she had to take a pill then she would do it. She yanked the pill bottle out of his hand and popped one of the pills in her mouth.

Sam pulled up to the safe house with Kensi and Deeks and pulled the car into the garage. They quickly ran a perimeter around the house and then made their way into the house to make sure it was clear. When it was done, Sam called Callen and told him that it was safe to bring Nell.

"What did you do in the shooting range?" Kensi was asking.

"Tell me what's in the box!" Deeks yelled.

"Tell me what you did in the shooting range and then I'll think about telling you what is in the box."

Sam chucked, "Yeah, just tell her Deeks."

"You know?!" Kensi asked Sam.

"Well of course I know. I was the first person Nell told." Sam admitted.

"So everyone is in on this but me?" Kensi asked.

"In on what?" Callen asked walking in with Nell.

"What Deeks did in the shooting range." Kensi answered.

"Oh…that." Callen let his voice trail off.

"Unbelievable." Kensi muttered walking away.

"Oh come back Fern!" Deeks yelled smiling.