DISCLAIMER: I do not own the rights to any of the NCIS:LA characters.
Reggie sat in the living room watching the ten o'clock news. When the report came on the screen he sat forward and called Joanie into the room. "Joanie, when you called Katy and Callen to invite them to dinner, they said they were taking a dinner cruise, didn't they?" he asked quickly.
"Yes they did, why?" she asked wiping her hands on a dish towel.
"Oh no, Lord no, please." He said as he shot off the couch and ran to the bay window. Praying he looked out the window and saw the ship in the bay engulfed in flames. "Do you still have Ms. Lange's phone number?"
"Yes Reggie, what's wrong?" she asked as she watched him grab his coat off the hook and ran for the door.
"Call Katy and see if she answers, if she doesn't, call Ms. Lange and tell her they may be in trouble. I'm going down to the docks." He said running out the door.
Joanie turned to the TV and watched the report. Slowly, she backed herself over to the phone and picked it up. She stood there a minute staring at the phone trying to remember Katy's number. Trying to force herself to remember, she pounded the phone against her forehead. Like an epiphany, she dialed the number and ran to the kitchen for Hetty's card. "Come on Katy, answer, please answer." She said as she listen to it ring and go to voicemail.
Joanie hung up and fumbled with the card and the phone trying to dial the phone. It slipped through her fingers and crashed to the floor. Again, she tried dialing and held the phone to her ear. When Hetty answered, she said. "Ms. Lange, I'm so sorry for calling so late. Callen and Amy took a dinner cruise tonight and there's one in the bay burning. I've tried calling Katy, but she doesn't answer."
"No." she said. "What channel are you watching?"
"It's channel seven, KGO our ABC affiliate." She said.
"Alright, if you hear anything, call me." Hetty said and hung up. Hetty went right to her computer and Googled the station. She poured herself a glass of brandy as she watched the live feed.
Reggie got to the docks as the fire boats started spraying the ship. His mind was in a million different directions. Silently, he said a few prayers. Others had gathered on the streets to watch the spectacle. There was talk and speculation that there was a bomb on board the ship, but Reggie shook of the notion. He tried calling Katy's cell again, but there was no answer.
Katy woke with a start, choking and gasping for air. Water was lapping at her feet, she tried to move, but couldn't. She opened her eyes and saw Callen on top of her, his head bleeding. With all of her strength, she pushed him off of her. Katy sluggishly got up and dropped her head on his chest. Over the noise in the background, she couldn't hear his heart. She tried to feel his breath on her cheek but there was nothing.
"No, please God no. Callen." She whispered. Katy felt his neck for a pulse, it was faint, but it was there. She tilted his head back, pinched his nose and gave three quick breaths. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched his chest rise and fall. She gave one more good breath and watched, waiting for him to breathe. "Come on Callen, please." She cried.
Katy saw lights in the distance and yelled at them, waving her arms wildly. She returned her attention to Callen and felt again for his breath on her cheek. Quickly, she pinched his nose again and gave another deep breath. Tears poured down her face, she lay across him and listened to his slow, but steady heart beat. She shook him with all she had and put her hands in the water that was gradually on the rise, splashing his face.
Hetty watched the feed, debating on whether to call the team. She took another swig from the glass and picked up the phone. "Mr. Hanna." She said when he answered. "There is a situation that could possibly involve Mr. Callen and Ms. Levin. I got a call from Joanie Rocco this evening saying that they were booked on a dinner cruise in the bay tonight. I'm watching live feed right now of one of the dinner cruise ships engulfed in flames."
"Lord," Sam said running his hand down his face, trying to wake up. "Are we headed back to San Francisco?"
"Not just yet, not until we have more information." She told him. "Please call Ms. Blye and Mr. Deeks to let them know to be on stand-by."
"Alright, Hetty. What station are you watching?" He asked.
"KGO channel 7." She said.
Sam got up and went into the living room, grabbing the laptop off the coffee table. Once he found the site, he watched the live feed. He heard Michelle's footsteps coming up the hallway.
"What is it baby?" she asked walking up behind him. "Oh my gosh, where is that?"
"San Francisco Bay." He told her. "Hetty just called saying Callen and Katy were taking a dinner cruise tonight."
"Have you tried calling them?" she asked.
Sam grabbed his phone and dialed Callen's number. There was no answer, so he dialed Katy's and got the same result. "They don't turn off their phones." He said.
"What about Kensi, would Katy answer Kensi's call?" she asked.
"I don't know, but Hetty wanted me to call them so they were on stand-by if we need to go back up there." He told her.
Reggie's phone rang, praying it was Katy, he answered it. "Katy?"
"No honey, I still can't reach her. I called Ms. Lange." She said. "Is there any news at all?"
"No nothing yet, there's rumors that there was a bomb on the ship." He told her.
"She's got to be okay, Reggie." Joanie cried.
"I'll call you when I hear something." He told her and hung up. A police officer walked past, Reggie flagged him down. "Sir, I'm Father Reggie at Grace Cathedral, I have some friends who were supposed to take a dinner cruise tonight, is there any way I can find out if they were on that ship?"
"Hold on, let me see if the passenger list is available." He said and walked away.
Katy felt movement beneath her and felt Callen lurch. He convulsed and began coughing. Katy rolled him on his side and looked at his head the best she could. When she rolled him back over, he was choking and gasping for air. Katy tried to calm him down and looked around for help. Callen grabbed her and pulled her down to him.
Gasping he asked. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, you're head." She said smiling, crying with joy.
Callen wrapped an arm around her and his eyes grew wide. "Katy stop, lay down." He told her.
"Why what's wrong?" she asked.
"Katy, on your side now." He told her.
Once she was on her side, he took off his jacket and held it to her back. Katy gasped in pain. "Oh my God."
"You've got a piece of glass in your back." He told her. "Don't move, I don't know how deep or close to your spine it is."
Callen looked around and saw no one.
The officer walked back to Reggie, "Ok, this is all I could get so far, do you know their names?" he asked.
"Katy Levin and Callen, I don't know if that's a first name or last." Reggie said nervously.
"Alright, they were on the ship. Do you by chance have a picture of them or know what they were wearing?" the officer asked.
"Lord, no I don't know what they were wearing. I can get pictures for you." He said.
"Alright, as soon as you get them let me know." The officer told him.
Reggie stepped away from the crowd and called Joanie. "Honey call Ms. Lange back and tell her I need photos of Callen and Katy."
"Oh no, Reggie, please tell me they weren't on that boat." Joanie cried.
"They were according to the guest list the police have." Reggie told her.
"Oh Lord, please let them be okay." She said. "I'll call her right now."
Hetty was distraught when she got the call. She sat at the desk in her study and stared at the laptop. When she hung up, she immediately called Sam to tell him. He didn't handle the news well either.
"Hetty are we going?" He asked.
"Let me contact Director Vance. If what the new has reported is true about a bomb being on board, we might be able to assist if not lead the investigation. It's only one thirty back east. I don't want to call too early." She told him.
"Don't wait too long; we need to get there quickly." Sam told her.
"Call the others for now, plan that you'll be returning to San Francisco until you hear otherwise." She told him.
Reggie sat on the curb watching as the fire department fought to douse the flames. It seemed just as they got the blaze under control, it would flare up again. He prayed with everything he had, everything that he was. He couldn't lose his parents, daughter and his beloved friend in the span of five years. The first two events challenged his beliefs and nearly drove him over the edge. Losing Katy would be his demise.
Callen fished through Katy's pockets for her phone. When he found it in her back pocket he tried to turn it on, but it was water logged. He realized that he never should've called Katy's attention to the glass in her back, now she was panicking and so much pain. He needed to find a way to get her off the boat and to someone who could help her. He told her he'd be right back and crawled along the desk for something he could signal with. Pain shot through his leg when he tried to stand up. In spite of the pain, he limped along looking, searching. Finally, Callen stumbled into the helm and found the radio. He pressed the button and spoke into the receiver and heard nothing. In the corner, he saw the emergency flares. He ran back out to the deck and over to Katy, firing the flare gun over his head. Callen dropped to his knees at Katy's side. Occasionally, he would look back up at the flare still burning brightly.
Reggie looked at the ship with a heavy heart until the flare shot into the sky. A sign thank you he said to himself and called Joanie.
"Baby, a flare. They didn't think there were any survivors, but someone on that ship shot off a flare."
Sam sat forward as they anchor reported that someone on the boat had shot off a flare. The camera zoomed in and there he was. On his knees leaning over what looked like another body. He smiled and called for Michelle and called Hetty.
"Did you see that, it was Callen on the deck." He said.
"Yes, Mr. Hanna I saw him." She said smiling.
Hetty watched the time pass while she waited for a decent time to call Director Vance. At three in the morning, local time, she called. "Leon, I apologize for calling so early, but we have a situation."
"What is it Hetty?" he asked.
"Have you had a chance to watch the national new yet this morning?" she asked.
"Yes, why?" he asked, "What's going on?"
"Special Agents Levin and Callen were on the ship that burned in the San Francisco Bay last night." She told him.
"What were they doing in San Francisco together? I only saw the vacation request for Agent Levin. How did Callen wind up there?" He asked pouring himself a cup of coffee.
Mr. Callen got worried and followed her. It seems Katy had a daughter no one ever knew about; this weekend was the fifth anniversary of her passing. Katy went up to the Bay Area for the annual memorial service." She told him.
Director Vance let out a ragged sigh, thinking about Jackie. "I had no idea, I can't begin to imagine."
"I've known Katy most of her life and I didn't know." Hetty said sadly. "Once we all found out, I made arrangements for the rest of the team to travel to San Francisco to be with her. I gave Mr. Callen until Wednesday to try to convince Katy to come back with him instead of staying up there alone."
"Alright, do we know their status or condition?"He asked.
"Mr. Hanna and I both saw Mr. Callen on the new broadcast, but there was no sign of Katy. That was a few hours ago, I assume they've been rescued. I've been calling around the area hospitals, but no one's releasing any information. I've been in contact with one of Katy's friends in San Francisco, but they haven't heard either." She told the Director.
"And you'd like to send the team in?" He asked.
"Yes, the reports suggest there was a bomb on board, with the team just wrapping up the Leshev-Larionov case, I'm worried. There is a Russian community in San Francisco; word may have gotten around of the arrests. How it was found out that Katy was there, I don't know. She was very careful and used only cash. The only way I knew where she was located was because of the GPS in the car I loaned her. She turned off her phone while she drove only answered calls from Ms. Blye. When she arrived in the city, she bought a prepaid phone and contacted Ms. Blye with that. Ms. Blye was kind enough to pass the number to Ms. Jones."
"I don't know Hetty, are there any other cases on the radar?" He asked.
"As of fifteen minutes ago, there is nothing." She said.
"Alright," he sighed, "Get the team up there. As soon as you hear about their condition, let me know." Leon said before hanging up.
Hetty immediately called Sam and informed him of the Director's approval. After speaking to Sam, she called Nell to make the travel arrangements. Nell being the woman she was had already made the arrangements hours ago, all she had to do was make one phone call to let the pilot know the plans were approved. She asked Hetty if she should head to the office and Hetty told her that she was on her way as they were speaking. Nell told her she'd be there within an hour and hung up. Her first call was to the charter company, second was Eric.
By five, the remaining team members had arrived at the Mission ready for their briefing. With coffee in hand, they sat in the bullpen while Nell pulled the information up.
"Okay, as you all know, Callen and Katy were aboard the ship that caught fire in the San Francisco Bay. We got word from Reggie that they and several others were rescued after Callen shot off a flare. Both he and Katy are listed in stable condition, they both suffered minor to moderate injuries, primarily lacerations from broken glass and flying debris. They were taken to Saint Francis Memorial Hospital on Hyde Street in the city. Reggie's been in and out of the hospital since they were brought in just after mid-night." Nell told them.
"Once the fire is completely out, the ship will be taken to one of the piers and put in dry dock while SFPD conducts the investigation. We've been granted permission to assist in the investigation until we find out whether or not it was a bomb and its origin. Hetty and Director Vance have expressed their concerns about how close this is to the closing of the Leshev-Larionov case. There is a large Russian population in the Bay Area, so anything is possible. However, we have no idea how anyone would find out Katy was in the City."
"She goes up there every year, right? Whoever it was had to have known about Karolina and Reggie." Sam said.
"Possibly." Nell said.
"What about Reggie, Joanie and the kids, could they be in some kind of danger too?" Kensi asked.
Nell looked to Hetty to answer that question. "I have asked SFPD to place an officer outside the house, at the school the children attend, the school Joanie teaches at and the church. There also has been an officer place outside Mr. Callen and Ms. Levin's rooms. As soon as you land, go speak with the police and then check on Mr. Callen and Ms. Levin. Once you have a better idea of their injuries, call me." Hetty said.
Sam was thankful it was a short flight, as soon as they landed at SFO; they were met by one of the SFPD Liaisons. He drove them down to the docks where the majority of the investigation was taking place. They crossed the police line and met with another officer who explained what they had so far. Sam was frustrated by how little information they had. He looked up and saw several security cameras; asking if they belonged to the company or the city. Immediately he called Eric and asked him to check the company's camera footage for suspicious activity.
It was nearly one in the afternoon before they got a chance to go see Callen and Katy. Hetty called several times throughout the morning to see if they'd made it to Saint Francis Memorial. She was frustrated that they hadn't been and called Reggie. He told Hetty that he was at the hospital around four that morning. He didn't know the exact nature of their injuries, but that they were okay.
Sam walked to the information desk and showed his badge, the receptionist immediately gave them the room numbers. They went up to the third floor and walked to Callen's room first. He wasn't there. Mildly panicked, Sam led the way down to Katy's room. When they walked up, two uniformed officers stopped them, asking for identification. Once they showed their credentials, they were allowed in. Katy was in bed, lying on her side. A large patch of gauze taped to her back. Kensi immediately went to her bedside. Sam looked around the curtain and found Callen lay out in the chair asleep. Sam, Kensi and Deeks walked back out of the room to the nurse's station and asked about their injuries.
The nurse pulled their charts and began explaining. "Let's see we'll start with Mr. Callen; he was treated for smoke inhalation and a wound to the back of his head. He also had several cuts; one in particular to his left thigh required stitches. The doctor also noted he had a mild concussion. Now, Miss Levin also was treated for smoke inhalation and several lacerations. Her most serious injury was to her back. When she was brought into the ER, she had a rather large piece of glass lodged in her back. She was very lucky. If it had gone a half of an inch deeper, it would have hit her lung. Or a half of an inch to the right, it could've hit her spine."
"Good lord. Do you know when they might be released?" Sam asked.
"I believe the doctor intends on releasing them either later today or tomorrow morning." She told him.
"Alright, thank you very much for the information." Sam said and walked back to Katy's room.
When they walked back into the room, Kensi went back to Katy's bedside and tried to wake her. Slowly, her eyes opened. Blinking several times, before she focused on Kensi's face. Katy smiled weakly.
"Hey Katy, how are you feeling?" Kensi asked.
"I'm okay." She said groggily.
"Do you think you can tell me what happened?" She asked.
Katy sighed and nodded her head. "We almost didn't get on the cruise. Both of us had a feeling something was wrong. Nothing happened on the cruise until after dessert was served."
Kensi waited for a moment while Katy drifted off to sleep and woke up again. "What happened after that?"
"There was a crash and a bang and the dining room filled with thick black smoke. The ship lost power and the emergency lights came on. Callen and I fought our way through the crowd to the door, but it was locked. We checked the other doors but they were locked too. I tried to throw a chair through the window, but I didn't have enough strength to hit it hard enough. Callen tried to kick the door open, but couldn't. I sat down on the floor and don't know what happened after that." She told her.
Callen woke and picked up where Katy left off. "I shot the window but it only splintered, it didn't break. So I picked up the chair and hit it a couple times. When it finally broke, I saw Katy passed out on the floor and put her out the window. There were several explosions, I remember flying out the window, landing on Katy. There were more explosions, I covered her best I could and got hit with something and blacked out."
"Then what?" Sam asked.
"I woke up; Callen was on top of me. I managed to get him off and saw the gash on the back of his head. He had a weak pulse, but wasn't breathing." She said starting to cry. "I gave him mouth to mouth and waited what felt like forever before he finally started breathing again. He felt the glass in my back and had me lay down. I don't remember much after that."
"I had to get Katy off that ship and to medical attention. I got up and sloshed through the water to the Helm where I found the flare gun. Shortly after that, we were pulled off the boat and taken to the docks. I remember Reggie being there, but not much after that. They brought us up to our rooms and I came down here to be with Katy." Callen said.
"Did you notice any suspicious activity or behavior?" Sam asked.
"No, but we both had a nagging feeling something was going to happen." Katy said. "Callen even asked me if I had my weapon."
"What made the two of you feel like that, any idea?" Kensi asked.
"No, just a gut feeling, we should've just forgotten about the money we spent on the tickets and gone back to the hotel." Katy said.
"Yeah, we should have." Callen said standing and limping to her side. "How are you feeling, how's the pain?"
Katy rolled over more on her back and smiled at him. "I'm doing okay. How are you?"
"I'm fine." He told her shaking his head. "Do you know how lucky you are? If that piece of glass had gone any deeper or more to the right, you'd be in a lot of trouble."
"I don't want to think about it right now, Callen." She said laying her head back on the pillow.
Sam's phone rang, of course it was Hetty. He relayed the information the nurse had given him about their injuries and told her they were with Callen and Katy. She asked that he pass on that she'd booked them all at the Marines Memorial again and that Callen and Katy would be sitting out of the investigation until they were released. She did however want them to stay in San Francisco, knowing they'd help the others in any way possible with the investigation. Deep down, Hetty knew both of them would be up and around within a couple days and out in the field with the team.
Fifteen minutes after Sam got off the phone with Hetty, Eric called. He'd been able to access the company's security system and found several people coming and going from the ship before it was boarded. He let Sam know that they were running them through facial recognition and checking their backgrounds. So far, everyone was an employee of the company and no one had any red flags. As soon as Eric or Nell found something, he said he'd call Sam back. Katy suggested checking the passengers who were on the cruise with them. Eric agreed and got started.
"So who's actually running this investigation, SFPD or NCIS?" Callen asked.
"For right now, SFPD until we find out whether or not it truly was a bomb." Sam told him. "Hetty wants the two of you to sit this out until you've been released by a doctor."
"Yeah right." Katy laughed and cringed with pain.
"I have to agree with Katy, we aren't sitting this one out. We'll do what we can until we're one hundred percent." Callen said.
"Yeah, we all figured you'd be doing that." Sam laughed. "I'm pretty sure Hetty assumes the same."
"Well, at least we still have the hotel for another week and a half." Katy told Callen.
"Why were you going to stay so long?" Kensi asked.
"I don't know, think about things I guess." Katy told her.
"Did you really feel like you weren't a good fit with the team?" Sam asked.
"Yes and no, I see how well you all get along and I feel like I was forced on you guys." Katy told them.
"Well, before we knew you were an agent you kind of were, but we welcomed you to the team with open arms once we found out you were." Kensi said.
"I know you all have history together. Since I float between the two sets of partners, I feel like the odd man out." She explained.
"Katy seriously I don't understand where you're coming from, but it's your prerogative. I think you're being overly sensitive and reading into things more than you need to." Sam told her.
"Hey, what about that night you and I grabbed a burger when Kensi and Callen were out of town? I had fun; it gave me a chance to get to know you better." Deeks told her.
"I did have fun." Katy admitted.
"You two met up when we were gone?" Callen asked.
Katy laughed lightly, "Yes, Callen I'd gone to the beach after work to take pictures and Marty happened to be there surfing. We started talking and we got burgers. It was nothing."
"Really Callen, the only time I touched her was when I helped her off the sand." Deeks said with his hands raised.
"It's okay Deeks." Callen laughed.
"So what do we know about the investigation so far?" Callen asked.
Sam told them that the police were tugging the ship to one of the dry docks where they'd be going over the ship with a fine tooth comb. SFPD had agreed to send information and samples back to Abby in DC so she could run her own analysis. Other than that, he said there really wasn't any more information. Callen asked how many survivors there were. Sam grew silent. Finally Kensi spoke.
"Aside from the two of you, there were only five others. There were only fifty people total on the ship between the staff and passengers. Once the ship is in dry dock, they'll start pulling the bodies off." Kensi told them.
Katy hung her head and began to cry. "It was totally by the grace of God that we survived."
"No, it was your training." Sam told her. "Did anyone else appear to be trying to get out of the dining room?"
Katy and Callen thought back. "Only a few, the rest were standing on the dance floor panicking." Katy said.
"Wait, you said the doors were shut and locked?" Kensi asked
"Yeah, I thought it was odd." Callen said.
"How many doors?" Sam asked.
"There were three in the dining room leading to the deck, one to the kitchen and a stairwell up to the deck with the restrooms. We didn't even think to check the stairwell." Callen told them.
"No worries, you guys did well. We're all very thankful you're alright." Sam told them. We're going to head back over to see if they've got anything new. We'll be back later."
As they left, they saw Callen get into the bed with Katy. They all smiled. The rest of the day passed slowly, once the ship was loaded into the dry dock and checked for structural stability, the CSI's were able to start photographing the scene and continuing their investigation. Once the bodies were removed, they got down to the meat and bones of it. Accelerants were found in the engine room, but no sign of an actual bomb. When the investigators went to check the air filtration system, they found a flex pipe leading to a small canister of some type of gas. It was bagged as evidence and tested. None of the bodies that were removed from the ship seemed to be badly burned except the crew who worked in the belly of the ship. Once the ME had a change to do a few autopsies and the gas canister was tested, they'd have a better idea of what was going on.
Sam, Kensi and Deeks returned to the hospital just after five and found Reggie, Joanie and the kids in the room with Katy and Callen. They told them what they felt was alright to pass on to the general public, but held the rest of the information until Reggie and Joanie left. It was a nice visit until they did leave. Joanie had called into work since she'd been up all night, pacing the floors waiting for word on Katy and Callen. Once she'd gotten some sleep, she started cooking. When the family arrived at the hospital, they had armfuls of foil trays full of food. Hetty had called Joanie to let her know that the team was flying back into town, so knowing that the team was going to be there was even more motivation for her to cook.
They all thanked Joanie profusely for her work and devoured the food. Joanie love to watch them eat. By six thirty, Reggie and Joanie were saying good bye so they could get the kids home, get homework finished, the kids bathed and in bed by eight. Katy would've walked them out had Callen let her get out of bed. Callen, in spite of his own injuries was really being sweet and very watchful over Katy. That afternoon when they were alone, he constantly asked if she was okay or if she needed anything. As annoying as Katy found his doting, she loved every minute of it.
Once they were situated and everyone had a seat, they started talking about everything they could speak of while Reggie and Joanie were present. Katy and Callen were both not surprised that the majority of the dead weren't burned. Neither could recall seeing fire inside the dining room. Sam pulled out his phone and showed them footage from the local news. The fire was contained to the bow of the ship. They called Ops to ask if they could find a schematic to the ship. Callen and Katy both wondered what of the ships mechanical parts were contained in the bow.
By eight; Sam, Kensi and Deeks were ushered out by the nursing staff. They didn't care who they were or what their credentials said. Callen was moved into Katy's room after he refused to leave her side. Everything but her bed was removed from the room to accommodate his bed. The staff only bothered them a few times over night. When the doctor came in the following morning, she felt they were well enough to be released. Sam picked them up shortly after nine and got them back to the hotel before he and the others headed back out to meet up with the officer in charge of the investigation.
An hour later, they got a call from Callen wondering where they were. Sam mistakenly told him and within a thirty minutes Katy and Callen were walking through the door. Sam really had to laugh at the two of them. Callen tried his hardest not to limp and grimace in pain while Katy tried not to make any sudden movements. Several of the officers tried to stop them until they showed their credentials and Sam yelled over that they were with them. When they joined the group, Sam made the introductions.
Katy noticed that there were photos of the passengers tacked to several rolling boards. She walked over to look at them; some were labeled as deceased, alive or missing. Callen joined her and they discussed whether or not they remembered seeing that individual. When they got to the end, they stopped and realized their tablemates weren't on the board. Immediately, they walked back to the table to ask the Lt. Hammond if there were others on the ship that weren't on the passenger list. He told them that those on the board were the only paying patrons on the ship, the others were staff. He then mentioned that they were waiting for that information from the company itself.
Katy and Callen mentioned that they didn't see their tablemates on the boards. Lt. Hammond asked them to walk the boards again. Thirty minutes later, they came back with the same result. Sam took Callen off and Kensi took Katy. They asked them to recall everything they could remember about the four people at the table with them.
"Alright Katy, tell me about the first person. Male or female?" she said.
"Female, I'd say she was mid-thirties, red hair to the middle of her back, green eyes. She had a scar on her cheek bone below her right eye." Katy told her.
"Alright anything else you remember about her, any accent of any kind?" She asked,
Katy thought for a moment. "For the most part, she spoke proper English. Occasionally, I'd catch a hint of an accent, Irish maybe? I also noticed the way her mouth contorted when she was trying to pronounce certain words. I doubt English was her first language." Katy told her.
"Very good, what about the person next to her, male or female?" Kensi asked, pen ready to take notes.
"Male, dark brown or black hair, muddy brown eyes. They were odd; I've never seen anyone's eyes look like that. It was like he was wearing contacts, but not really. It's so hard to describe, but he had pock marks on his cheeks and a scar on his chin. Again I caught a hint of an accent, but I can't place it. Of all of them, he was the oddest one. He was awkward." Katy said.
"What do you mean by awkward?"
"I don't know, his coordination was off, his walk was labored." She shook her head trying to find the right words to describe him.
"It's alright; we can come back to him. Who was beside him?"
"Another male, he had blondish-brown hair, blue eyes, no scars and no detectable accent. He seemed the most normal of the four. Average build, maybe five eight. There was nothing more to him. He wasn't especially attractive nor was he unattractive; you know he was just there. He did have a lump on the side of his nose, right up at the bridge on the left side." She said.
"What kind of lump?"
"It stuck out I'd saw an eighth to a quarter of an inch. Like a growth or something. The last person was female, brunette with really pretty brown eyes with gold flecks in the iris. She had a straight, pointed nose. A mole or a tattoo under her left ear, I couldn't tell which. I remember looking at her leg as she walked away, she had a snake tattoo that went from her foot, up her thigh, and it wound around her leg." She said.
Kensi smiled, "I wish all witnesses were as observant as you."
"I think it's because we've been trained to be so observant." Katy laughed.
"Is there anything else you can remember?" Kensi asked.
"They disappeared right after dinner. Callen and I assumed they were on the dance floor, when dessert was announced, they came back to the table, ate and left again. Not even five minutes later we heard the first bang or crash. It wasn't an explosion; it sounded like metal on metal." She said.
"Alright, let's go show this to Lt. Hammond and see what Callen had to say. I'd bet you both describe them the same way."
"Maybe not, women notice different things." Katy pointed out.
"True, how are you feeling?" Kensi asked.
"It's about time for another pain pill." Katy said looking at her watch. "Don't worry; we're just taking Tylenol and Ibuprofen."
They walked back to the group and handed Kensi's notes to Lt. Hammond. He looked from Katy's description to Callen's and then up at the two of them. "You're joking? You two had to talk about this before you came in." he said.
"No, this is the first time we've even thought about the other passengers, why?" Katy asked.
"You're descriptions are virtually identical. I mean there are a few different things, but for the most part. You guys are good. Wish half my officers could describe a perpetrator as well as the two of you can. Want to give a class while you're here?" He laughed.
"It's part of our training." Callen said.
"Imagine what it would be if we were actually on duty, this is what we could observe casually." Katy added.
"Well, you're good. Do you two think you could work with one of our sketch artists to come up with a drawing of these four?" Hammond asked.
"Of course." They agreed.
Within fifteen minutes, the department's best artist walked into the building and took Katy and Callen aside. She was shocked by how thorough the two were. By the time she was finished with all four sketches, they looked like photographs. She walked back over to Lt. Hammond and handed them to him. Hammond laughed and shook his head in disbelief. He handed them to Sam who scanned them and sent them to Eric.
"Hey Eric, can you do two things with those sketches I sent you. Try running them through the facial recognition software if you can and also go back through the security footage to see if you've got anything on them. Neither Callen or Katy saw them in the pictures of the other passengers." Sam said.
"Alright, wow these are really good rendering, we should be able to put them through the system. Hey these are the employees we say going on and off of the ship hours before the cruise left." Eric asked.
"Are you sure Eric?" He asked.
"Yeah, positive. We've got the background and everything on them already. I sent it to your phone maybe five minutes ago." Eric told him.
"Alright Eric, if you come across anything else, let us know." Sam said and hung up.
They took a break and walked a couple blocks to a diner for lunch. Callen and Katy ate what they could and choked down pain killers. They agreed that maybe they should've at least taken the rest of the day before trying to come in. Once the meds kicked in, they were feeling a little bit better.
Sam waved the rest of the team and what officers were standing around over to watch the four suspects boarding the ship carrying boxes. Each time they boarded, they carried boxes of what appeared to be fresh fruits and vegetables. On the third trip back on to the ship, the blonde male carried a canister for the soda machine. Sam guessed that he had the canister of gas hidden in it. Sam asked about possible identities, but nothing was back yet.
The rest of the afternoon drug by, Callen and Katy took off around three to go back to the hotel. When they got to their room, they fell into bed and slept for three hours. When Sam and the other came back to the hotel, Callen and Katy met them for dinner. Sam could see that they were trying to jump back into things too soon and suggested they only come out for a few hours the following day. They agreed to see how they felt when they woke up and go from there. Sam honestly hoped he didn't see them until dinner the next evening. They had a nice dinner at the hotel before they all turned in for the night.
Callen and Katy had a horribly painful sleepless night. When one of them managed to get some sleep, the other was up. Finally around four, Katy insisted they break out the prescription pain killers they were given when they were discharged. Callen sent a text to Sam telling him they wouldn't be in until late tomorrow morning or afternoon if at all. By five they were sound asleep and slept until noon. Katy tried to get out of bed to get dressed and couldn't, her back hurt her that badly. Callen was the same story. Between his head, his leg and being achy from the blast blowing him out the window, he couldn't function well either. They called down to the front desk and asked for a pizza to be delivered to their room so they at least had something to eat.
The hotel was very understanding and very helpful. A piping hot pizza was sent up to the room along with several bottles of water. When one of the bellboys brought the pizza up he told them to call if they needed anything at all, no matter how small. Callen thanked him and gave him a ten dollar tip for the fast service. The kid grinned widely as Callen closed the door. He hobbled back to the bed and sat the pizza between them. They ate and watched TV until their food settled at which time, Katy handed him another pain pill.
They slept for another five hours and tried to join Sam, Kensi and Deeks for dinner. To their surprise, the three brought dinner to them. They flipped through the channels on TV and found a movie they could all agree on while they ate. When they were all through, Sam told them about the days findings. Eric and Nell were able to confirm the employment records and IDs on the four who sat with them. Kensi pulled her lap top out and showed them the suspects.
"The red headed woman is a native of the bay area; a Tara Kaminski, thirty-seven from Antioch and works in the city. The dark haired man; Jeff Rogers, forty was born and raised in Quincy, Massachusetts and transferred to San Bruno in two thousand nine. The blonde man's name is Mike Karnes, thirty –two, born in Salem, Massachusetts and moved to California; Moss Beach in the eighties. The last one, the female brunette; Victoria Warrant was born in Novato where she still lives with her parents. She is twenty-five. The only thing that links them together is the fact that they work for the Hornblower cruise line on the weekends." Kensi told them.
"What do they all do for the cruise line?" Katy asked.
"Tara and Victoria both are servers. Jeff is an engineer in the engine room and Mike is a porter." Deeks added.
"What about priors, any of them have a criminal record?" Callen asked.
"Aside from speeding tickets and a couple DUIs they're as clean as a whistle." Kensi told him.
"I don't know there's something about them. We need to dig deeper with these four. Why were they sitting in the dining hall when they should've been working?" Katy said.
"Well, we still don't have the work schedule from the company yet, it could be that they were only scheduled to load the store room." Kensi suggested.
"Doubtful." Callen said.
"What about the bodies of the crew, have they been recovered yet?" Katy asked.
"As far as we know, all of the bodies have been removed from the ship. CSI's already been through it a few times." Sam said.
"Have you been through it?" Katy asked him.
"No why?" He asked
"You may see something they don't, any one of you might." She told them.
Sam nodded and Callen agreed. "It's worth a try."
"So do you two think you're going to try to come in tomorrow?" Sam asked.
"We'll see how we feel in the morning. We slept most of the day. I called down and ordered a pizza around noon, took some pain killers and fall back to sleep until shortly before you guys got here." Callen told him.
"It's always worst the second day and you over did it yesterday. Hopefully you start feeling better soon. We miss working with you guys." Sam told them.
"Not being out there on this investigation is horrible. I don't know what's more painful the cut on my back or sitting here all day doing nothing." Katy laughed.
"Hey." Callen said offended. "It's not you've been sitting here alone."
"No, that's right; I've had the cat here too." Katy smiled, patting his knee.
"The cat, I came all the way up here." He started to say.
Katy wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his ear. "I'm joking honey."
"I know you are." He said kissing her.
"Alright-e- then, if they're making out, they're feeling better." Deeks said.
"What are you jealous?" Katy asked with a knowing smile. "Come on Marty, I'll give you some love too."
"The hell you will." Kensi laughed.
Sam looked at Kensi and Deeks. "It's about damn time."
An hour or so later; Sam, Kensi and Deeks headed to their own rooms. Katy and Callen sat up and talked for a while before going to bed. They were going to try to make it out to the pier tomorrow afternoon. Katy's back was still sore, but nowhere near as painful as it was and Callen's head and leg were better too. Callie hopped up on the bed and cuddled between the two of them as they fell asleep.
Sam, Kensi and Deeks headed out around eight the following morning, without checking in with Callen and Katy. Lt. Hammond was already there and looking very worn out. He gave them a weak smile as they walked up to the folding table he was sitting at. Hammond had the Schematics lying out on the table and was marking where each body was found. On another folding table behind him were dozens upon dozens of photos the CSIs had taken. Each stack was sorted according to where they were on the ship. It was tedious work.
They got themselves a cup of coffee and walked back over to the table. Sam laughed at the archaic method, very thankful for their tech wizards. Hammond began telling then that four charred bodies they found in the engine rooms matched the four who'd been sitting with Callen and Katy during dinner service. He said that he'd also spoken with a representative from the Hornblower cruise line and was told that the employees were allowed to dine with the passengers if the cruise wasn't fully booked. Hammond went on to say that the maximum capacity in the dining room could accommodate up to one hundred people.
Katy and Callen were just getting out of bed when the building shook violently. Both stopped in their tracks and waited for it to continue shaking, but it stopped. Callen went to the window; smoke was billowing out of one of the lower floors of the building. He could see the people on the streets below running away from the building.
"What the hell was that?" Katy said from the bathroom doorway.
"Some type of explosion on one of the lower floors." Callen said walking to the closet for his clothes. "Get dressed; we've got to get out."
Katy pulled a pair of jeans from the closet and slipped them on.
"Hey Lieutenant, there was an explosion at the Marines Memorial hotel, isn't that where you guys are staying?" one of the younger officers said, walking over to the table.
"Are you serious?" Kensi asked. "Katy and Callen are still at the hotel."
Sam pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed Callen's number. "Hey G you two alright?" he asked when Callen answered.
"Yeah, we're fine. We're getting dressed it was one of the floors below up. Hopefully we'll be able to get out. I doubt the elevator's working." Callen told him while he said on the bed to put on his socks and shoes.
"Okay, we're on our way back to the hotel now. Keep me posted." Sam said.
"We will. See you later." Callen said and hung up.
Katy sat next to him on the bed and put on her shoes. "We taking the cat or are we leaving her here?"
"I think she should be okay. It's the floors below us. Bring your credentials, badge and weapon." He said before he leaned over and kissed her.
They were about to head for the door when there was a knock. It was an employee of the hotel. "Sir, Ma'am we need to evacuate the building, so if you'd please make your way to the stairs." He said and pointed towards the left side of the building.
Callen and Katy followed the other guests down to the lobby and out into the streets. They crossed the street and looked back up at the building. It looked as though the explosion was contained to the fifth floor and three rooms to the left of theirs. The fire department was on scene just as Sam, Kensi, Deeks and Lt. Hammond arrived. Several of the SFPD officers on scene had rolled police tape across the street at the entrance of the building. The six of them crossed the tape and re-entered the building.
So far, there was very little information. The fire was contained to the one room, which happened to be vacant at the time. After the fire was out and cool enough to enter, the team accompanied the CSIs into the room. It looked as if the fire started in the AC unit below the window. Sam and one of the CSIs were looking under the AC unit and happened to look under the bed.
"Um, we need to get the bomb squad." The CSI said.
"Everyone out now!" Sam yelled.
"Sam, can you do it or do you need the bomb squad?" Callen asked.
"I don't know; check the bed for weight triggers." He said as he lifted the bed skirt at the end of the bed.
Kensi, Deeks and Lt. Hammond were on their knees looking over the bed. "Don't see any." Hammond said.
"Alright, let's get the mattress and box spring out of here so Sam can get to the bomb." Callen said.
"Can he really defuse the bomb?" Hammond asked.
"Sam's a former SEAL." Callen told him.
"Enough said." Hammond laughed. "You really are an eclectic group aren't you?"
Katy and Kensi stripped the bed and tossed the sheets aside. Together with the guys, they got the mattress and box spring out of the room. Sam shooed them out of the room as he got down on his hands and knees to look at the bomb.
"Hammond, call the bomb squad." Callen said.
"Should we call Hetty?" Katy asked.
"Yeah." Callen said pulling his phone from his pocket and walked away from the group.
Katy and Kensi stood outside the door. "Sam what do you need?" Katy asked,
"For the two of you to get your asses out of here." Sam said with a smile.
"Roger that." Katy said and moved down the hall to the stairwell.
Sam walked out of the room just as two members of the bomb squad were walking up the stairs. He was shaking his head. "You guys need to get downstairs." He said before walking back to the room with the techs.
Callen walked back over to them and looked back at Sam. "Is it that serious?"
Sam nodded, "Yeah, go now." He said and disappeared into the room.
"Alright, everyone downstairs." Callen said.
They hurried down the stairs and out to the street. Katy and Kensi were looking up at the building as they crossed the street. Callen and Hammond were talking between themselves while Katy and Kensi listened and added a comment here and there. Katy kept looking at her watch, then up at the fifth floor. Deeks had walked away a few minutes before and returned with an armful of coffee cups. They thanked him and continued their conversations. The manager of the hotel approached to ask the status of the fire investigation. He nearly fell over when he was told the original explosion was a bomb and a second had been found under the bed.
"We've never had anything happen like this before." The manager told them. "Do you think it could have something to do with the dinner cruise?"
Katy and Callen looked at each other. "The only common this about the two is us." Katy told Callen.
He gave her a knowing look at quickly glanced up at the building, then pulled her aside. "That was my thought too. Aside from the hotel employees, who else knew we were taking the dinner cruise?"
"Reggie and Joanie were the only ones I told because they had invited us over for dinner." She told him.
Callen pulled his phone out and called Ops. "Hey Eric, I need you to go back through the security cameras for the hotel we're staying at. Primarily all activity on the fifth floor; room five nineteen." He said.
"How far back?" Eric asked.
"Start by going back twenty-four hours, if you find nothing go back further." He said.
"Will do." Eric said and hung up.
"You don't think Reggie and Joanie have anything to do with this do you?" Katy asked with a pained look on her face.
"I hope not, but you know we need to check." Callen told her pulling her to him, rubbing her back. "How are you feeling?"
"Sore, but not too badly, how are you doing?" She asked smiling.
"I'll be better once Sam walks out of the building." He said.
Suddenly there was a huge explosion. Glass, insulation and fragments of brick rained down on them. Smoke billowed out of the gaping hole in the side of the building while flames raged up the side of the building. Callen pulled Katy to him and covered her from the debris. He looked back at Kensi and Deeks who were doing the same. Once it was just ash and bits of fabric wafting to the street, they looked up in horror.