DISCLAIMER: I do not own the rights to the NCIS:LA characters, I'm only borrowing them. I only own my own characters.
Callen and Katy left bright and early at four in the morning. He let her drive the first let of the drive since she knew it like the back of her hand. They agreed that they'd stop at Casa De Fruita for breakfast and a quick wander through the stores there. They'd just passed through Menlo Park when Katy's phone rang. She handed it to Callen to answer.
"Hey Reggie, everything okay?" he asked turning down the radio.
"Yeah, I was just wondering if you guys had left yet, the kids woke up early with the notion that you guys were going to come back by before you left to say goodbye." He told Callen.
"No, I'm sorry; we're already on the road. I'll put it on speaker so Katy can say goodbye to the kids." He said.
"Alright, come here you guys Katy and Callen are on the phone." He said.
"Hey guys, I'm sorry we didn't come by, but we have to get back to LA. We'll come back up soon, okay?" Katy said.
"But Katy." Mary said and started to cry.
Katy hit the steering wheel. "Please don't cry Mary. I promise we'll be back soon."
"You have to." Mary said.
"I promise, baby." Katy said.
They talked for a few minutes more before Reggie took the phone from the kids and said goodbye. Katy promised that they'd call as soon as they got home. Within an hour, they were in Gilroy and ready to get onto the one-fifty-two. Roughly fifteen miles down the road, they stopped for breakfast. The same waitress who she'd seen before was there. She talked with them a few minutes after taking their order. Within minutes, their orders were in front of them along with fresh coffee. Katy asked what time the rest of the stores opened and found out it wouldn't be until after eight.
After breakfast, they wandered through the gift shop, candy store and the specialty shop. Callen bought more wine in different flavors and they were back on the road. He took the wheel and drove until they stopped in Bakersfield for gas when Katy took over. She drove the majority of the way through the Grapevine and let Callen back behind the wheel once they hit Santa Clarita. When he saw Magic Mountain, he asked if she'd ever been or wanted to stop while they were there. She smiled and told him she just wanted to get home. Not to mention it was too hot to leave Callie in the car that long.
They pulled up in front of the house at five. Once the car was unloaded, Reggie was called and Callie was fed, they collapsed on the bed and slept for a couple hours before running out to get something to eat. Both were really looking forward to getting back to the office and resuming their daily routine. Callie settled at the foot of the bed once they were settled in bed for the night.
Katy and Callen walked into the office and over to the bullpen. Kensi, Sam and Deeks were sitting at their desks talking. No sooner had Katy set her bag on the desk and Hetty was there asking to speak with her. She followed Hetty over to her office and sat across from her.
"Reggie and the children are alright?" She asked.
"Yes, they're doing fine. Reggie's putting the house on the market and looking for another one. He's going to be filing either for an annulment or divorce. The church is supporting him one hundred percent." She told her.
"Very good. Now, I know Ms. Jones mentioned the team the CIA and Director Vance has formed. I wanted to give you a little more information about it. It would be a six month assignment, hopefully you and the team will be able stop all of the sets of twins with that period of time."
"I have no choice on whether or not I go?" Katy asked.
"No, both our Director Vance and the CIA director feel you're the best person for the job. You would be in charge of the six other team members and would be travelling all over the world. Nell has already compiled a list of names and locations for you. Both Nell and Eric's services will be at your disposal, though whatever case the team here happens to be working on will of course take precedence." Hetty told her.
"When am I leaving?" Katy asked.
"The team is already in the ground in New Jersey chasing down leads. I have you booked on a flight out Saturday morning." Hetty told her handing her a file. "These are the first five names. The team already has the information."
"Saturday, I'm leaving Saturday?" she said turning to the bullpen.
"I'm sorry; I know you just got back, Mr. Callen will understand. It is after all only a temporary assignment. Depending on how quickly you and your team works, you could be back by Christmas." Hetty said.
Katy took a deep breath, stood and walked back to the bullpen. Callen looked up at her when she walked in and sat at her desk. "Everything okay?" he asked.
"No. I've been assigned to a team that will travel the world looking for Dmitri's rogue twins and other single births like me." She told him.
Kensi, Sam and Deeks looked from Katy to Callen and back. "So when are you leaving?" Kensi asked.
"Saturday, the team is already in New Jersey tracking down leads. It's a six month assignment." She told them.
Callen sat back in his chair and tossed his pen on the desk. "Saturday?"
"Yes Saturday." She said sullenly. "It doesn't leave much time considering today's Wednesday."
Callen ran his hand through his hair. "I'm going to do nothing but worry about you the whole time you're gone."
"I know I'm going to worry about you guys too. I don't know if I'll be reassigned to the LA office when I come back or if I'll be sent somewhere else." She said. "I've love working with you guys."
"We've enjoyed working with you too, Katy." Sam said leaning over and patting her leg.
"Friday night, we will all go out for one last drink together as kind of a going away party." Kensi suggested.
Katy looked over at Callen, waiting for a reaction, but he sat emotionless. "Callen, you okay?" Katy asked.
"Yeah, I guess." He said in a low voice. "Drinks Friday night sounds fine."
The feel in the office was one of sadness the rest of the week. Katy knew Callen didn't want her to go, but also knew he would never ask her not to. They talked about the team, but not very much. They just tried to spend as much time together as possible. By the time Friday afternoon rolled around, he was moody and emotional; snapping at everyone. He slowly packed up his bag while the others waited for him. Sam could see that Katy's departure was really bothering him.
When they got to the bar, they sat at their usual table and ordered the first round of drinks. Kensi toasted to their friendship and a successful mission. While Callen raised his glass, his heart just wasn't in it. Katy knew she was in for a very long night once they got home. Since it was their last night together, they all parted ways after only an hour at the bar. Katy and Callen walked slowly out to the car and headed home.
"Callen." Katy said as she drove.
"Yeah." He said looking out the window.
"I am coming back and I'll call as often as I can." She told him.
"I know I'm just going to miss you." He said looking at her for a brief moment.
"I'm going to miss you too." She said taking his hand.
"What do you want to do for dinner?" He asked.
"I don't know. I just want to spend the night with you." She smiled when he looked at her.
"How about Chinese?" he asked seeing their usual restaurant coming up on the right.
Katy automatically pulled in and parked. "I know you don't want me to go, I have no choice in this it's an assignment."
"I know. I'd never ask you not to go. Just like I know you'd never ask me to not do something when it came to our careers. Please be careful out there." He said
"I will, I promise you." She said before she got out of the car.
They ordered and sat down to wait for their meal. Callen had an arm around her and held her hands in the other. She was leaning into him and kissed his neck. When their order was ready, they walked to the register to pay and were told it was free because Katy was going away. They thanked the staff profusely and went home. First thing in the door, Katy fed Callie while Callen got plates and utensils. They met back on the couch and ate while they watched a little bit of TV.
After they'd eaten and all of the leftovers put away, Katy asked Callen what kind of wine he wanted her to open. He suggested the Blackberry wine. She opened the bottle, poured two glasses, placed the cork back in the bottle and carried it all back to the couch. They sipped on the wine while they watched TV. Katy got up and disappeared into the bedroom. After a few minutes, she walked out and placed her gloved hands over his eyes.
"What the hell?" He laughed.
"Stand up with your eyes closed and turn around, don't open them until I tell you." She said removing her hands and backing away from the couch so he could have a full view of her.
He stood and turned towards the sound of her voice. "Can I open them now?" he asked.
When she was ready, she told him to open them. He immediately smiled. "Damn" he said walking towards her. "Reggie was right you are hot in your dress blues."
Callen walked around her looking her up and down as she stood at attention. He lifted the back of the jacket and took a look at her ass and smacked it. Katy continued to stand motionless. "So, while you're standing at attention, I can do anything I want to and you can't stop me or say a word."
"If that's how you want to play the game, you could say that." She said with a sexy smile.
Callen walked to face her again and ran his finger up the gold-tones eagle, globe and anchor buttons. "What do they call the red stripe up the side of the slacks?"
"It's a blood stripe. You get them after you've picked up the rank of an NCO; Corporal." She told him as he ran his fingers across the ribbons above her left breast.
"You look so sexy in that thing. Is it true that it looks better lying on the floor or across the foot of the bed?" He asked in a husky, lust filled voice.
She said wrapping her arms around his neck kissing his deeply.
His fingers worked the buttons and slid the jacket off her shoulders. Then untied the tie at her neck and tossed it over his shoulder before he unbuttoned the crisp white blouse. Callen pushed her towards the bedroom, his lip never leaving hers. The blouse fell to the floor right inside the door, exposing a very lacy white bra. Callen ran his hands across her breast before unbuckling the belt and unzipping the trousers. Slowly, he pushed them down her hips and watched as they fell to the floor. She slipped off her black patent leather shoes and kicked off the pants. He laid her back on the bed admiring the matching white lace panties.
He looked back at the pile of clothes on the floor and turned back to Katy smiling. "Yeah, I have to agree, it does look pretty good on the floor." He said kissing her again.
Katy pulled his shirt over his head and worked at his belt. He stopped her and pushed her further up onto the bed. He kissed her again and then moved onto her neck, collar bones and breasts. He pulled her to a sitting position while he unclasped her bra and slid it down her shoulders. Her hands found his belt again and managed to get it unbuckled, his pants unbuttoned and unzipped.
He stood back up and let his pants fall to the ground before he got back on the bed. She turned off the light and opened herself to him. They made love for the first time in their relationship, for hours. Slowly bringing themselves to the peak. When they were completely spent, they nestled into one another and fell asleep.
Katy's alarm blared at them at six. She rolled over and smacked the alarm clock and immediately rolled back over to face Callen. His eyes were open and he smiled at her.
"I'm going to miss you so much." He told her brushing his thumb across her lips.
Tears stung her eyes. "I'm going to miss you too."
He pulled her close and held her tight until she had to get up and get ready for the flight. He got himself dressed and watched as she packed her the rest of her toiletries in her suitcase and zipped it closed. She called for Callie who came running and jumped up on the bed.
"I've got to go away for a while, you be good for Callen, please." She said cupping the cat's face and head bunting her.
"She'll be fine, won't you Callie." He said scratching the base of her tail. "Are you ready?"
Katy sighed, "I guess."
He carried her bag out to the Mercedes and put it in the trunk. Katy locked the house and got into the passenger seat. She started crying as they pulled away from the house. When they arrived at LAX, Callen parked in the short-term lot and walked her into the terminal. They got in line to check in, wrapped in one another's arms until it was her turn at the check-in counter. She handed the woman her ticket and credentials. The woman behind the desk asked her all of the typical questions before accepting the suitcase and handing her back her ticket and ID.
Katy and Callen walked over to the security check point and stood there watching the passengers coming and going. Finally after fifteen minutes, Katy turned to him. He saw the tears in her eyes and kissed her.
"I love you, Katy." He whispered.
"I love you too." She said. "I'll call you as soon as I land."
"Please be safe and come home soon." He said giving her one last kiss and hug.
"I will, I promise." She smiled and turned towards the check point. Once she got to the head of the line, she turned to look at him and waved. She handed the TSA Agent her ticket, credentials and weapon before she walked through the metal detector. The agent handed her everything back and Katy walked to the rope and found Callen there with one last hug and Kiss. They said their I love yous and goodbyes once more before she was asked to proceed to her gate. Callen stood and watched as she walked down the corridor and disappeared.
By the time her got back out to the car, his phone was ringing. "Did I tell you how much I love you?" she said when he answered.
"Every day." He smiled with tears in his eyes.
"I love you so much." She said.
"I love you too. I'll talk to you in a few hours. I hope you have a good flight." He said before she hung up.
Callie was waiting at the door when he walked in. He scooped her up and carried her to the couch. She squirmed out of his arms and ran back to the door, howling. "Mom's not coming back for a while, Honey." He told her, but it made no difference.
His phone rang, knowing it couldn't be Katy; he looked at the caller ID. It was Kensi. "Hey." He said when he answered.
"Hey, how are you doing?" she asked.
He sighed. "She's gone already." He told her.
"Do you want to grab a beer with Deeks and me?" She asked.
"No, you guys go; I'm not much fun to be around right now." He said.
"When are you fun to be around?" she laughed.
Her comment made him smile and he gave a light laugh. "Yeah, I know."
"I'm just going to stay home and be miserable with the cat.' He laughed.
"Alright, Callen we'll see you Monday. Call one of us if you needs anything, okay?" Kensi said.
"I will, thank you Kens." He said and hung up.
Callen walked into their bedroom and looked at her uniform hanging over the boot board. He grabbed it and hung it on a hanger and put it in the closet. He turned around and looked at the nightstand, noticing her IPod. Callen walked over and picked it up; looking at the music she had loaded and laughed when he saw all of the Taylor Swift albums. He saw music from other artist like John Mayer, Aerosmith, Van Halen, Maroon 5 and several other artists. Putting the ear buds in his ears, he played one of the songs and smiled, immediately thinking of Katy.
As the hours passed, he played more and more of the music and couldn't help but feel worse and missed Katy even more. Every song reminded him of her. He turned it off and laid it back on the nightstand. Callie jumped up on the bed and walked up to him, meowing the entire time.
"I know Callie, I miss her too. You hungry?" he asked getting up and walking to the kitchen. He checked the refrigerator for an open can of cat food. When he didn't find one, he grabbed one from the cupboard and opened it. Callie rubbed up against his legs and wound herself around his ankles as he walked over to get her plate. He gave her a few pets down her back as she pawed at his hand. She then followed him back over to the counter, talking to him as he loaded her plate with the wet and dry food. She followed him back to where her plate belonged and meowed as she ate.
"You're welcome, pretty girl." He said as he stood there and watched her eat.
Callen looked at the clock on the stove and realized Katy's flight should be landing in New Jersey any time. Excited to hear her voice, he took his phone out and sat it on the counter while he poured himself the remaining wine from the bottle they'd opened the night before. As the minutes passed, he ached to hear her voice and wondered how he would survive the next six months without her there.
At a quarter to four, his phone played Katy's ringtone. He smiled and immediately answered. "Hey, how was your flight?" He asked, walking into their bedroom and sat on his side of the bed looking at her photo.
"Hey Honey, it wasn't a bad flight." She said.
"Have you met the team yet?" he asked.
"No we literally just landed; I'm waiting to get off the plane now. I'm nervous, how do you do it, leading your own team?" she asked.
"You'll get the hang of it." He told her.
"They're not all NCIS agents, they're CIA too and I'm sure they've all been with their various agencies longer than I have. How can I lead them with only two years under my belt? To them, I'm still a probie." She whined.
"Stop Katy, you'll do fine. You were chosen to lead the team for a reason. Obviously Director Vance sees something in you." He said smiling at her self-doubt.
"I don't know, Callen. We'll see. Alright, I'm at baggage claim. I'll call you when I get to the hotel, okay?" she said.
"Alright, I love you." He said.
"I love you too." She smiled and hung up.
Callen hung up, smiled and picked up her photo. Callie jumped up on the bed and walked over to him. "Well, she landed." He told her and she meowed in response. "How are we going to get through this?"
He sat the photo on his nightstand and lay back on the bed, grabbing her pillow. Callen smelled it and closed his eyes. He was so lonely without her there; he sat up and looked around, grabbed a change of clothes for the next day turned off the light and closed the door. Callie followed him down to his old room and sat there watching him as he unrolled the bed roll and sat down. Cautiously, she walked over to him and sniffed the fabric. Finally after she walked all the way around it did she step on it and over to Callen's side. He gave her some love and rolled onto his side.
Callen woke when his phone beeped indicating he had a voicemail message. He knew it was from Katy and wanted to kick himself for missing her call. He punched in his numerical password and listened to the message. "Hey Callen, it's me. I wanted to let you know I made it to the hotel. The team seems pretty cool, I guess. Who knows? I guess you either fell asleep or went for a run. I'll try calling you tomorrow, but we're looking for our first set of names on the list. If I don't talk to you tomorrow, I love you. I'm exhausted, so I'm going to head to bed so we can get an early start tomorrow morning. I love you, Baby. Goodnight." She said and the message ended.
He debated on calling her back but figured she was already asleep, considering the message was left thirty minutes ago. Callie meowed at him, so he put the phone down and rolled back over, falling asleep almost immediately. When he woke up at midnight, Callie was gone and all the lights were on in the house. He walked out to the living room and locked up before going back to the room and lying back down again.
No sooner had Callen sat down at his desk at work with a cup of coffee; Eric called them up to Ops for a new case. It involved an Intel Marine who disappeared with intimate knowledge of very sensitive information; that in the wrong hands could jeopardize the lives of thousands of service members. As he and Sam headed down to Pendleton to talk to his command, Sam asked how he was doing. He didn't say much, just stared at the world as they drove down the five freeway. Sam hoped his melancholy only lasted for a few weeks.
Katy's input would've helped them immensely during the case, but after three weeks, they managed to find the missing Marine safe and sound. Callen sat at his desk working on paperwork while the others talked. No matter what they did, they couldn't engage him in conversation. His phone beeped, he had a text message. He picked up his phone and saw it was from Katy and smiled. When he opened the message, he found a picture of her with her first successful save. A half-brother named Sergei. He proudly showed the picture to the others and sent a response asking where they were going next. She only sent four words back; 'Alaska-I love you.'
Life quickly returned to the drudgery that was life before Katy. The team missed her dearly, the perspective and skills she brought to the team were sorely missed. Kensi and Callen moped around the office when they weren't working cases. Hetty hated seeing the team so down without Katy around and truthfully, she did as well. Even Nell and Eric sat in Ops morosely wishing for Katy's return.
Over the next few months, Callen received seven pictures of Katy with her new found half siblings and their family. They talked on the phone for at least two hours every Saturday, no matter where in the world she was. From Alaska, they traveled to Denver, then over to Europe with stops in England and Moscow. Back to the US; up to Alaska again and the back east to Pennsylvania. No sooner had they wrapped one case, they were immediately off to the next destination.
He got a hand written letter from her once a week and a package with either thank you gifts or things she'd gotten for him. The longer she was away, the more he got used to her bring gone. It still wasn't easy by any means, but with the support of the rest of the team and his weekly check-ins with Nate, he was still plugging along.
By the second week in September, they'd hit the halfway point. Seven down, eight to go. They'd talked about the next case in Virginia that weekend when they spoke on the phone. She sounded so happy and fulfilled when she told him about the most recent addition to her extended family; Nataly. He smiled the entire time she talked, just because he was able to hear her voice. Callen asked if she thought she'd make if home for Christmas, but she honestly didn't know. Cases nine and ten were taking them back to Russia and they weren't able to find very much information on either the single birth siblings or the twins. She hoped that she would so they could spend their first Christmas together, actually together.
Monday morning, Callen sat at his desk alone in the bullpen. He was back to not sleeping so instead of sitting at home missing Katy; he came to work to attempt to be productive. The front door closed and he looked up but didn't see anyone. A few minutes later, Hetty walked over to him.
"Good morning Mr. Callen. How was your weekend?" she asked.
"It was alright, got another package and letter from Katy and we talked for a few hours Saturday afternoon." He smiled.
"Very good, they're working on number eight, aren't they; in Virginia?" she said.
"Yes, then they're off to Oregon." He told her.
She handed him a set of tickets. "Be back here Monday morning for work."
His face lit up, "You're letting me go see her? What about our cases?"
"We can manage without you for a week." She said turning to walk away. "Oh and Mr. Callen, please try to return in better spirits. You've been a bit of a curmudgeon the last few months."
"I know I'm sorry. I worry about Katy and I miss her." He told her leaning back in his chair.
"We all miss her Mr. Callen. Just a few more months and she'll be back with us." She said. "Now go, you leave in two hours. You don't want to miss your flight."
Callen didn't need to be told twice; he shot out of his chair, packed his bag, dumped his coffee in the sink and headed for the door. Sam pulled in as he was getting into the Jag and waited. "Hey Sam, I'm." he stared to say.
"Going to see Katy, I know. Tell her we all say hi." He smiled and walked into the office.
In addition to the tickets, she also gave him the name of the hotel the team was staying at. It's wasn't far from the ship yard, so he could stop by and have a quick visit with Gibbs and his team while Katy was working the case. He didn't bother going home since he always carried a bag with extra clothes and toiletries with him. So he headed right over to the airport and parked in long term parking. Callen was excited to be seeing Katy after three long months and hoped she could take an evening off so he could take her out to dinner and over to meet Gibbs.
He checked in, showing his credentials and walked to Security. Once he'd been cleared, he went to his gate and waited. Within the hour, the plane landed and the ground crew set about refueling the jet and restocking the refreshments. He looked at his watch and figured barring any delays, he'd be in Virginia by six and at the hotel by seven. Thirty minutes later, he was onboard the plane as it taxied to the runway for take-off. He pulled her IPod from his bag and started listening to some of her music. He drifted to sleep mid-flight and the flight attendant had to wake him up when they were making their final approach for landing.
Once they landed and he walked through the terminal, he found one of the rental car desks and rented himself a car. He could barely contain his excitement as he drove down the highway towards Falls Church where she was staying. Callen connected Katy's IPod to the cars stereo system and blared Van Halen as he drove. When the song Jump came on, he very loudly sang along. A huge smile crossed his pace as he saw the hotel coming up on the left. Exiting the freeway and making the left under the overpass, he pulled into the parking lot and got out of the car; nearly running into the hotel lobby.
The one thing he hadn't planned on was how to find her room. He looked around the lobby to see if by chance she was down there. There was a group of individuals sitting around one of the tables who looked vaguely familiar.
"Oh my Lord." Special Agent Cassidy Long said putting her drink on the table. "Where's Katy?"
"I think she went up to the room, why?" Asked CIA operative; Michael Lewiston.
"Look who just walked in the door." She told the others.
"Is that?" Special Agent Anthony Carter asked.
Cassidy got up and walked towards him, "Excuse me, Special Agent Callen?"
He turned to her surprised. "Yes?"
"My name is Special Agent Cassidy Long; I'm a member of Katy's team. She doesn't know you're here does she?" She said.
"No she doesn't. Do you know where she might be?" He asked.
"She's upstairs in her room, it was a pretty hard day." She said, looking at the others and pointed to the elevator. "I'll take you up to her room."
"Thank you, I appreciate it." He told her.
"You know, none of us actually believed you two were really together. You've got a reputation for being somewhat of a lone wolf." She told him as they stepped into the elevator.
"Well, people change." He smiled. "How is case eight going?"
"Well, we found Anastasiya. The twins had already gotten to her, so she's in the hospital in critical condition right now. Katy's taking it pretty hard." She said as they stepped out onto the third floor. "Our rooms are adjoining, so you can go in through my room."
"Thank you." He said as she let him in. "She and I will probably be down in a little while."
Cassidy smiled, "Take your time, she's really missed you."
Callen walked through the room and over to the open door leading to Katy room. She was in bed lying on her right side one of her legs sticking out of the covers. Quietly, he sat his bag on the floor and took off his shoes before he got in bed next to her. Her hair was splayed out on the pillow above and behind her head. She was such a sight to behold, absolutely beautiful. He stroked her hair and kissed her forehead. Slowly, her eyes opened and sparkled like aquamarines, shining in the dimly lit room. She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close. He wrapped his arms around her and inhaled deeply, smelling everything he loved about her.
"I'm dreaming, aren't I." she said softly.
"As much of a blur as today's been, I think I might be dreaming too." He laughed.
"What are you doing here?" she asked smiling at him.
"Hetty sent me. She told me I've been grouchy." He said.
"I'd believe that. I missed you so much." She said kissing him.
"I missed you too." He said.
"How'd you get in the room?" she asked.
"I Special Agent Long let me in through her room. So they didn't believe we were together, huh?" he said.
Katy shook her head. "No, they didn't."
"Are you hungry?" he asked her.
"Ravenous." She said kissing him long and hard.
Callen rolled her onto her back and kissed down her neck to her collar bone. The made quick work of removing their clothes and had wonderful mind-blowing sex before they redressed and headed downstairs to get a bite to eat. When the elevator doors opened, her team looked over at them shocked. They were wrapped in one another's arms, kissing. Cassidy elbowed Michael.
A little embarrassed that the doors had opened and they hadn't noticed, they stepped out and walked over to her team. "Callen, I'd like to introduce you to my team. You've already met NCIS Agent Cassidy Long; this is Jason Davis and Anthony Carter also with NCIS. Then we have Carson Pierce, Raymond Light and Michael Lewiston with the CIA."
Callen shook all of their hands while they made room for the two of them at the table. They were discussing tomorrow's visit to NCIS headquarters with the hopes that one of their agents a Tim McGee would be able to help them track down case eight's twins. Callen asked if they minded if he tagged along on their trip, promising he'd stay out of the way. They all agreed. Callen asked Katy if she was ready to get something to eat, she nodded and the two excused themselves.
They went to a little diner Gibbs had taken Callen to on one of his visits with him. It just so happened that the man himself was sitting at a booth in the back when they walked in. Callen walked Katy down to introduce him and Katy to one another.
"Callen, what are you going out here?" Gibbs asked.
"Jethro, I'd like to introduce you to Special Agent Katy Levin, my girlfriend." He said.
Gibbs nearly choked as Callen said the words, but smiled. "Girlfriend, since when?"
"Six months ago. Katy's heading up the team tracking all of the Leshev single births." Callen told him. The two had spoken several times, including when they were in San Francisco chasing Anka and Alina.
"Well, sit down, please." Gibbs said waving for the waitress to come with two menus. "It's nice to meet you. Sorry about my reaction, Callen has never actually introduced me to a woman he was dating."
"No, it's alright; my team didn't believe we were seeing each other either." Katy smiled.
"You're team is coming into the office tomorrow, aren't they?" Gibbs asked.
"Yes we are. I'm glad I got to meet you beforehand. Rumors are that you're a little intimidating." She laughed.
"I've heard those too." Gibbs laughed.
"He can be when he needs to be. You two have something in common." Callen said looking to Gibbs. "Katy here was in the Marines."
Gibbs smiled warmly. "Well Semper Fi." He said offering his hand. "What was your MOS?"
"Armor, I spent all of my enlistment at Lejeune." She told him.
Gibbs nodded. "Very good. How long were you in for?"
"I only did one enlistment; I used the GI Bill to pay for school. I got my degree in journalism." She told him.
Gibbs laughed. "You're degree is in journalism, yet you're and NCIS Agent?"
"Yeah, I know." She laughed.
The waitress walked to the table with two menus and two glasses of ice water. Katy quickly looked at the menu and ordered the French Dip sandwich with extra Au Jus. Callen ordered a BLT with extra bacon. Both said they were fine with ice water and the waitress walked away.
"So what case number is your team on right now?" Gibbs asked.
"Eight." She told him.
"And all of these are your half siblings?" he asked.
"Yes it's still hard to believe sometimes that I've got forty-five half siblings I never knew I had." She said.
"So you grew up in foster care just like Callen?" he asked.
"Yes. Hetty brought me over from Russia when I was about two." She said.
"Hetty has a habit of doing that; doesn't she?" Gibbs said looking at Callen. "I have to say you two make a good looking couple. Never thought I'd see the day when Callen would bring me a woman to meet."
Their sandwiches were delivered and Gibbs laughed when they passed half of their sandwiches to one another. Katy and Callen looked at one another and laughed too. Then told him that they always order and share no matter where they are. Gibbs admitted that he and his first wife used to do the same thing. He was truly happy for Callen; thankful that after forty-three years he'd finally met someone he thought enough about to bring to meet him. He hoped they had a very long future together.
By nine, Callen and Katy were headed back to the hotel and off to bed. He told her that she was going to like the rest of Gibbs team. Cassidy had closed the door between their rooms to give them a little more privacy. They fell right to sleep cuddled together and slept the entire night. When they woke the following morning, both felt so refreshed. Better than they had in months.
Since they were going to be spending the day in the office, Katy wore a pair of slacks and flats with a nice blouse and blazer. Callen felt under dressed compared to her, but he was on vacation. They met the rest of her team downstairs for breakfast before they headed over to the office. When they walked into the bullpen, Gibbs was talking with Director Vance and waved them over.
"Good Morning, Gibbs, Director Vance." Katy said when they walked up.
"Callen, I hadn't expected to see you, what are you going here?" Vance asked.
"I came to see Katy." He smiled.
"Oh, yes, I forgot about that." He said giving them a knowing smile. "How long are you here for?"
"Hetty has me booked on a flight back on Sunday." He said.
"Alright, well make yourself at home. Maybe Katy will let you get a little time in out in the field, only she's in charge." He smiled.
"Katy, this is Special Agent Timothy McGee, he's going to be helping you in MTAC with the search for the twins." Gibbs said.
Katy offered her hand. "Nice to meet you Special Agent McGee."
"Please, call me Tim." He smiled and looked up at Callen. "Hey, what are you going here?"
"I'm visiting with a friend." He smiled, shaking his hand as well.
Just then, Tony and Ziva walked off the elevator. They were deep in discussion until they saw Callen. "Hey Callen, how are you?" Tony said shaking his hand.
"Good morning Tony, Ziva how are you." He asked. "This is Special Agent Katy Levin, she's here working the Leshev single birth cases."
"Nice to meet you." Ziva said shaking Katy's hand.
Tony pushed between Katy and Callen, putting his arm around her. "So, how are you? How do you like it here so far? Can I get you a cup of coffee?"
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Gibbs said looking at Callen and back to Tony.
"What?" he said with a puzzled look and cast a glance at Callen.
Callen leaned over. "Kindly remove you arm from my girlfriend's shoulder."
"Oh." Tony said with his eyes wide. "I'm sorry, I had no idea."
"I think Cassidy's single, the red-head over there." Katy told him and laughed as he quickly walked away.
"Well, get yourselves some coffee or something and we'll go on up to MTAC and get connected with Nell and Eric." Tim told them.
As Callen let her to the break room, Cassidy was at her side. "Ew, I need a cold shower. That guy is so creepy."
Katy and Callen laughed.
Once they had coffee in hand, the team met Tim upstairs outside MTAC. He let them in and they followed him to the bottom of the stairs and sat in the first row of seats. He walked to one of the computers and brought the LA office on the screen.
"Hey Nell, Eric good to see you guys." Katy said with an ear-to-ear grin.
"Katy, so good to see you, hold on, Kensi wants to say hi." She said running out of Ops. Within a few minutes, Kensi, Sam and Deeks were all standing in Ops saying hi.
"It's so good to see you guys." She said as Callen joined her in front of the camera.
"So how'd you like your surprise?" Kensi asked beaming.
"I loved it, long overdue. I missed him so much." She said putting an arm around Callen.
"Yeah, well just remember he's only there for a week. I want my partner back." Sam laughed.
"Don't worry I'll send him home, Sam." Katy laughed.
"Alright, we'll let you guys get to work. Good seeing you two together again." Sam asked as he waved and the three left Ops.
"It is really good to see you two together again. Callen has been moping around the office since you left. I think Hetty sent him away because he was so miserable." Nell laughed.
"Gee thanks Nell." Callen said.
Tim sat by the computer listening to the exchange between Katy, Callen and the LA office and smiled. "Alright, let's get down to business." He said. "Were you two able to check the traffic cams in the area of Anastasiya's house to see when the twins had been there?"
"Yes, they were there Sunday around noon. We got the plate number and ran it through the DMV records and found it was registered to a Nancy Johnson. We compared her photo to the twins and she's a match. Yet again, we don't know which twin she is." Nell said.
"What about a last known address?" Callen asked and quickly remembered it wasn't his case to be asking about.
Katy laughed at him and jabbed him in the side. "My case, remember."
He ran his fingers through his hair and smiled embarrassed. "Yeah sorry, old habits die hard."
"It's alright, you're forgiven this time." She smiled and looked back at Nell and Eric on the screen. "Alright his question, do we have a last known address for her?"
Nell and Eric were laughing. "Yeah, we're sending the address to Tim now. We've been watching the house, but there's been no activity in a couple days. As soon as we get something more with that, we'll let you know."
"Thank you. Anything else for us on this particular set of twins?" Katy asked.
"No, nothing more than we've already given you." Nell said.
"Ok, see you later." Katy said and signaled for Tim to cut the feed.
Katy turned to the rest of her team and sighed. They were going through the file. Katy took hers from the chair and sat down rereading it. Callen noticed the last name. "Kirkin? Any relation to Anatoli Kirkin?" he asked.
Katy's team looked up. "As a matter of fact yes," Katy said. "Their mother was his sister. She passed away of natural causes a couple years ago."
"Interesting." He said and continued reading over her shoulder.
"I thought so too." Katy said.
By noon, they had no new information so they headed out for lunch. Gibbs and his team joined them. It was a nice leisurely lunch, no one talked about the case. They just enjoyed the time out of the office. When they returned to the office and MTAC, they called the LA office. Nell and Eric popped onto the screen, swatting back and forth at each other not noticing the incoming call.
Katy and Callen looked at one another. "Hey guys?" Katy said.
"Oh sorry, we didn't see the call." Nell said embarrassed.
"So that's what you two do when no one's around?" Katy laughed.
"No, not usually." Eric said.
"I was wondering if you guys had anything new." Katy said.
"Well, we've been watching the house all morning and there's been no one coming or going, so we went back through the traffic cams around Anastasiya's house. We thought we'd lost sight of the car, but we actually picked it up on one of the side streets, we've been watching a second address and nothing yet. Sorry, I know you were hoping to wrap this one up quick." Nell said.
"Well, if worse come to worse, we'll leave Anastasiya under the protection of the one of the teams here and move on to the next case. We'll come back when we find out where Lera and Lena are." Katy said.
"Hopefully it doesn't come to that." Nell smiled.
"What about financials, anything there with the American personas accounts?"Katy asked.
"There have been one or two internet purchases and we're trying to get the billing address. Where was an ATM withdrawal the day before they went to Anastasiya's, but there's been nothing since." Nell said.
Katy sighed. "Phones and email addresses; anything there?"
"There have been several numbers the American persona has been using; we're monitoring all of them." Eric told her.
Callen could tell Katy was frustrated and put his hand on her shoulder. "What am I missing?" She asked him.
"You've asked about everything I would've asked about." He told her.
"Alright you guys, thank you so much for your help. Let me know if you find anything." She said to Nell and Eric. They smiled sympathetically and disconnected the feed.
Tim walked over to Katy and Callen. "The only other thing to do is go out to these two addresses and have a look around. We don't have a case at the moment, I'm sure Gibbs wouldn't mind helping out."
"I was thinking the same thing. I've been running this team ragged. Let's see what kind of information Nell and Eric can get us between now and tomorrow morning. We'll go out to have a look-see tomorrow. I'm going to go talk to Gibbs." Katy said and walked out of MTAC.
She saw Gibbs sitting at his desk and walked down the stair to his desk. He smiled, looking at her over his glasses. "Any luck?"
"No and I think the team's about to go all mutinous on me." She laughed.
Callen walked down the stairs and joined them. "She's asking all the right questions and looking for the right information." He told Gibbs.
"What's you next move?" He asked.
"There are two addresses our LA analysts are watching. I'm ready to say screw watching them and just go in, hit both houses at the same time. I would need an additional team to do so. Do you think Director Vance would loan me a team for a few hours?" She asked.
Gibbs smiled. "Of course. I guess it's a good thing Callen came after all."
"Yeah, he doesn't know it but I'm going to put him to work." Katy smiled.
Gibbs gave them an odd smile and looked back at his computer. "From what I hear, you already have."
"Do you know if he's in his office?" Katy asked.
"He should be." Gibbs said picking up the phone and dialing the director's extension. "Special Agent Levin was wondering if you had a few minutes to talk to her. She's looking to borrow a few extra agents tomorrow. Alright, I'll let her know. He'll be right down."
Katy smiled, "Thank you. You didn't need to call him; I could've gone to his office."
"Why waste the energy." He said.
Katy yawned. "Do you want me to get you a cup of coffee or something?" Callen asked.
"Sure, thank you." She smiled and patted his chest.
"You should go out to the little cart in the quad." He said pulling out his wallet. "How do you like your coffee?"
"Katy likes her coffee strong." Callen told him.
"Ask for two of the Gibbs specials and get something for yourself." He told Callen handing him a twenty dollar bill.
"I got it, Jethro." Callen said trying to hand it back to him.
"Damn it Callen, just go. Get the woman some coffee." He laughed.
"I'll be right back." Callen said squeezing her arm.
Katy watched him walk to the elevator and shook her head. "We're constantly fighting over who's going to pay for what. You should have seen us the day I moved in with him. We were standing at the register in the middle of the bedding department fighting over who was going to pay for the comforter set."
"Shannon and I used to do that all the time. It used to make her so mad. Sometimes I think I did it just to push her buttons." He smiled at the memories.
"I'm sorry for your loss." She said.
"Did Callen tell you?" He asked.
"No, I know that look all too well. I lost my daughter five years ago." She told him.
"It's so hard to lose a child. They're supposed to out-live us." He said.
Katy smiled and choked back the tears. "Does it ever get any easier to deal with?"
Gibbs shook her head. "I wish I could tell you it does. You just find new ways of dealing with it. Why don't you and Callen come over to my place for dinner tonight? I make a pretty mean steak. We can talk more over dinner. I know this really isn't the place for a conversation like this."
"We'll be there. I've never known Callen to pass up a steak." She laughed.
Just then Director Vance appeared behind her. "So Gibbs tells me you'd like to borrow a few extra agents tomorrow, what are your plans?"
"We're getting nowhere by having our analysts watching these two addresses. I'd like to go in, hit the houses at the same time. With Callen I've only got eight." She said.
"I'm sure we can find some agents to volunteer for the task." The director said smiling at Gibbs.
"I'm sure Ziva, Tony and Tim wouldn't mind offering their time." Gibbs said.
Katy smiled. "Thank you. I appreciate it."
"You're welcome." Both Gibbs and the Director said.
"I'm going to let my team head back to the hotel. If I don't let them blow off some steam, I think they'll hang me." Katy told the director.
"Of course, you and your team have bounced from location to location since you started. Let them have the rest of the afternoon." The Director agreed.
Callen walked off the elevator with a cardboard tray of coffee and handed one to Gibbs and the other to Katy. Both Katy and Gibbs thanked him. Gibbs called up to MTAC and told Tim to have the team come down. Once her were all there, Katy released them for the rest of the day. She knew the first thing they were going to do was go to the local bar. Before they ran out the door, she told them that they needed to be sober and hangover free for the following morning's operation. They looked rather disappointed, but agreed to not drink themselves into oblivion.
Gibbs got up from his desk and waved for Katy and Callen to follow him. Callen knew exactly where they were headed. When they stepped off the elevator, they heard Tony and Ziva talking with another woman. When they walked into the lab, the woman yelled Callen's name and went running towards him, nearly knocking him over. Katy just watched with an interested smile. Callen turned towards Katy and introduced her to Abby. Abby gasped and gave Katy a huge hug. Katy was a little shell shocked.
They all talked for a while before Abby ran to her phone and called someone up to her lab. Within a few minutes, Tim walked in with an older gentleman and younger man. Tim handed Abby the largest container of soda she had ever seen. The older gentleman greeted Callen warmly.
"Mr. Callen, how are you?" He said shaking Callen's hand. "What are you doing out here?"
"Actually, I took a week off to visit my girlfriend." He said with an ear-to-ear grin.
"Girlfriend, well when do we get to meet the lovely lady?" He asked.
"Dr. Mallard, I'd like to introduce you to Special Agent Katya Levin, my girlfriend." He said. Abby's jaw dropped.
"You didn't tell me she was your girlfriend." She said excitedly, hugging Katy again.
Once Abby let go, Dr. Mallard offered Katy his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, please call me Ducky."
"Nice to meet you Ducky." Katy said trying not to laugh at his nickname. "Ducky. I like it."
"This is my assistant Jimmie Palmer." He told her. Katy shook his hand as well.
"Ok, so tell me everything." Abby said. "How did you meet?"
"Callen's team actually rescued me from an undercover operation that had gone very bad." Katy said.
"Aw, how sweet, your knight in shining armor." Abby swooned.
"I stayed with Kensi for a few days because my apartment got torched. Kensi was about to get evicted because my cat and I were staying with her then I moved in with Callen and we've been together ever since." Katy smiled.
"Well, congratulations. You make a very smart couple." Ducky announced. "How long will the two of you be in town?"
"I'm here until Sunday and Katy's here until she wraps her current case." He told them.
Ducky nodded, "Ah, you're working the Leshev single-birth cases?"
"Yes, that's correct." Katy smiled.
"You've had how many successful cases so far?" Ducky asked.
"Seven, this is number eight and there are seven more and I only have three months left of my assignment before I go back to the LA office." She said.
"Ah yes, very good." He said. "Mr. Palmer and I have some paperwork to finish. It was a true pleasure meeting you, Mr. Callen good to see you again."
As the afternoon wound down, Katy called Nell one last time and told her about the plan to hit both houses tomorrow. Nell agreed to continue to watch the two addresses until that time and to call if any new came up. Katy thanked her and hung up. Callen was standing at Gibbs desk talking, so she walked back over to him and slipped her phone into her pocket. He smiled at her.
A half hour later, they were headed to the store for two more steaks then over to Gibbs' house for dinner. No sooner had they walked in the door and Gibbs was at the refrigerator pulling out three bottles of beer. Katy gladly accepted it and popped the cap immediately. They stood in the kitchen talking while Gibbs got the steaks out and seasoned them. The conversation was continued when they went out to the back yard while Gibbs had the steaks on the grill. Katy enjoyed watching the two of them laugh and joke. She could tell that they'd been friends for a number of years. When they sat down to eat, Katy was utterly speechless by how tender and juicy the steak was. She ate the entire steak and all of the sides Gibbs had made without a word. Both Callen and Gibbs watched in amazement as she ate the huge steak.
"What, I have had a steak that good in years." She laughed.
"Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it. Do you always eat like that?" Gibbs asked.
"Yes she does, though you can hardly tell." Callen laughed.
"Where the hell do you put it all?" Gibbs asked with a smile.
"I run a lot." She said and patted Callen on the back. "So much that this one has trouble keeping up with me."
"I made the mistake of running with her one night. I will never do that again. By the time we got back to the house, she wasn't even winded and wanted to go further." Callen laughed.
"How far did you run?" Gibbs asked.
"I think it was six miles. That was right after my apartment burned, so I hadn't gotten a chance to buy a new pedometer." Katy told him.
Gibbs nodded. "Yep, still got that Marine mentality, don't you?"
"Ah, yes and no. Fitness wise yes, everything else no." she said taking a sip of her beer.
Gibbs cleared his throat, "So how old would have your daughter been this year?"
Katy swallowed hard and sat down her beer. "She would've been sixteen. Her father and I were in the Corps together when I got pregnant. We gave her to his parents to raise until he was able to take custody of her."
"Kelly would've been in her twenties by now." Gibbs told her.
She saw the sadness in his eyes. "How did it happen?"
"Car accident. She and my wife were witness to a murder and put into protective custody while I was deployed. I got word that the drug cartel had gotten to them and caused the accident." He told her sullenly.
Katy shook her head. "My father was responsible for my daughter and her father's parent's deaths."
"I'm sorry, Katy. No one should have to go through that." He told her and reached across the table. She put her hand in his and leaned into Callen.
"How do you deal with it?" She asked, choking back the tears.
"Jethro builds boats in his basement." Callen said.
Katy burst out laughing. "Like ships in a bottle or actual boats?"
"Actual boats." He laughed. "I do build other things too."
"I guess my photography is my outlet." She said.
Callen nodded. "Katy's a very gifted and talented photographer. We've got some of her photos hanging up in the house."
The three sat talking for another two house before Katy and Callen left for the hotel. Katy knocked on the teams rooms to make sure they all made it back to the hotel in one piece and weren't blitzed out of their minds. Thankfully they'd just come back to the hotel had some dinner and spent the rest of the evening in the bar until they went up to bed. They went to bed themselves hoping the raids tomorrow were successful.