Warnings: Angst, darkish, maybe some minor spoilers for the series.
A/N: Happy NCIS Tuesday! Sorry, I know that I promised some of you that I was going to get this up yesterday but real life got in the way of a three page paper. Trust me, I would have much rather have been working on this than a paper lol.
Thanks everyone who has favorited, followed, or reviewed this story. I didn't get to respond to all of you this last time, but I did read them all and I appreciate them!
There was a look in Tony's eyes that Gibbs knew all too well. It was the look of a man that had lost everything. Or a man who was about to lose everything if they didn't make it to the apartment in time.
It was exactly what Gibbs had prayed and hoped never would happen to Tony... his Shannon violently ripped away from him, leaving him to pick up the pieces of his shattered life. Spurred on by that thought, Gibbs pushed the car to its limits, weaving in and out of traffic dangerously. He was going to do everything in his power to make sure that they got there in time, that Leah and Jack were safe... that Tony did not go through the same pain he had gone through.
Pulling the car up to the curb in front of the apartment, Gibbs slammed on the brakes and threw it park, flying out of vehicle. For someone that had a busted knee, Tony was keeping pace with the former marine as they tore up the stairs, weapons drawn. Any hope that the pair of federal agents had that they had made it to Leah before Wayne, started to fade away when they saw the door ajar, the lock busted.
And it completely dissolved when gunshots echoed down the hall from the bedroom.
Wayne pulled back slowly on the trigger. Leah reacted quickly, pulling out the gun, and fired.
She didn't see where her shot ended up, but she managed to get it off before Wayne and sent his towards the ceiling, shattering the light above the bed. Ducking, she crouched down in front of the closet, not wanting to leave her baby's side. Blood was pounding in her ears and she thought her heart was going to beat right out of her chest. She waited for Wayne to fire at her again... but nothing happened.
In a flash the room became deafening, silent... except Jack's hysterical cries. Opening her eyes she stood, the gun still aimed at Wayne and she noticed that her bullet had gone straight through the side of his neck. He was gurgling and gasping for breath, blood spilling out onto the antique wood floors and his life was slowly fading away right before her eyes.
She had seen someone shot before. Tim had shot Mrs. Evans when she had attacked Tony, was threatening to kill them. But she had never actually fired a gun at a live human being. Back when they had first started dating Tony had argued with her about learning how to fire a gun. He had dragged her to the range because he insisted she needed to learn to protect herself.
Funny how things worked out and how right he'd been.
"LEAH!" Tony shouted from the living room.
Her ability to answer was gone as she was frozen in her spot, body immobile as she watched the young man dying on her bedroom floor and she couldn't find her voice to respond to him. She had been the one to do it. True, there was no choice because she had to protect Jack... but still... she had taken a life. A young life. Tears began to blur her vision and the room swayed slightly. What had she done?
"Leah, give me the gun, darling," Tony's voice softly cut through the haze. "It's okay, now. Give me the gun."
Shaking from head to toe, Leah managed to hand Tony the weapon. He took it from her and put the safety on, gently placing it on the bureau. Leah collapsed into his arms, feeling them circle around her and hold onto her tightly.
Burying her face against his shoulder she could hear the sirens in the background, Gibbs gentle voice soothing Jack, and Tony whispering to her that it was alright now, that she was safe, that Jack was safe. And that's when the emotional dam broke, that's when she sobbed into his chest and clung to his jacket while he rubbed her back. "I... I didn't have a choice!"
"Darling, it's okay," Tony told her. "It's okay. You were acting well within your rights."
"I killed him!" Leah cried, pulling back, her eyes wide with shock. "I took the gun and I killed him!"
"You did what you had to do to protect yourself and Jack," Tony said, wiping her tears. "It was self-defense, Leah."
Leah swallowed the bile in her throat, feeling the strong urge to vomit. Tony must have seen the pallor of her skin because he dragged her out into the living room, sat her on the sofa and went to get her a cup of tea.
Gibbs was still holding Jack, still comforting him, but he was looking at her with large amounts of concern. Did she look that terrible?
"Boss? Tony?" McGee's worried voice carried from the stairwell. "Is everything okay?"
"In here, McGee," Gibbs called back. "You might want to call the medical examiner."
"Oh no... we were... we were too late?" McGee asked, panic in his voice as he pushed his way into the apartment. Relief washed over him when he saw Leah seated on the sofa but then realization dawned on him. He pulled out his cell. "I'll let Metro know they have a body. Or is this the FBI?"
Gibbs gave Jack a little kiss on the temple. "FBI. Attack on a federal agent's family."
Tony came back into the living room with the tea and handed it to Leah, helping her to steady her hands. "Here, darling, drink this. You'll feel better, okay?" He reached out and pushed her hair back behind her ear. "Leah... if you hadn't killed him... you'd be dead right now... and Jack wouldn't have his mommy... you didn't want that..."
She shook her head, her voice rising in hysterics with each word she uttered. "I... I killed him! I... there wasn't another choice... Was there?"
He gently rubbed her back. "There wasn't another choice. If I had been here... he wouldn't have even made it back to the bedroom."
Leah let her tears run down her cheeks. "But I still took a life. I'm not you, Tony! I don't hunt bad guys for a living! I've never even fired a gun at someone! The only time I used a gun was when you insisted on taking me to the range to learn how to use it! I'm a professor, I teach kids the same age as Wayne!"
"Hey," Gibbs said, causing her to look at him, "that kid was a sociopath, Leah. Nothing like the ones you teach, got it?"
"But...Gibbs..."
"No buts! Got it?"
"Got it... boss."
Tony let out a sad laugh and pulled her towards him, kissing her temple. He felt her starting to ease, even if she wasn't entirely okay with ending Wayne's life. He knew it was always going to be hard for her to accept. After all, she was right. She wasn't a cop. She didn't carry a gun for a living. And she certainly had never shot someone before today. But man... was he glad he'd fought with her to learn how to fire a weapon.. despite her protests.
Gibbs shifted Jack onto his mother's lap as Fornell arrived. Glancing back at the family sitting on the sofa, the SSA walked, briskly over towards the FBI agent, with a slightly troubled look in his eyes.
"Oh... please tell me you nailed the bastard," Fornell growled, low in his throat.
"Actually... Leah did."
"Leah?"
"Wayne had her and Jack cornered."
"Never poke a mama bear."
Gibbs chuckled. Yeah. Isn't that the truth. He looked over his shoulder at Tony and his family. If Tony hadn't prepared Leah, hadn't stressed the importance of learning how to defend herself... she might be dead at that very moment. Silently he thanked whoever was watching out for Tony... Kate... Shannon... Tony's mother... because he didn't want to think about his SFA going through the pain of losing his family like he had.
Somehow the team adverted disaster again and a big one at that.
Hours after the FBI had processed Tony and Leah's apartment, the couple ventured to spend the next few days at Gibbs' house. Their place was still considered a crime scene, the locks needed to be fixed, and the blood stains removed from the floor. Tony also knew that it would be better for his family to stay somewhere else for a few days.
Leah had been withdrawn, even with Tony, Gibbs, and the FBI telling her that she had acted well within her means. Tony was worried about her... but he didn't want to push her. So, instead he silently supported her by making her some hot chocolate and watching her favorite movies on the DVD player in the guest room.
Jack had gone down for the night early, exhausted from all the excitement of the day. His parents were grateful because they were exhausted too. And it allowed them to have a few quiet moments together.
Tony leisurely ran his fingers through her hair. He felt at peace for the first time in six weeks. His family was safe, he was safe and he didn't have to relive those terrible forty-eight hours over gain through trial. Wayne was dead and he couldn't say he was sorry. The only thing he was sorry about was that he didn't put the bullet through the sociopath himself. And once his knee was even better he was going to take his family and get away for a few days. Maybe even escape up to the Hamptons. His father and Linda were in Europe for next several weeks.
"I definitely prefer the older version of Sabrina,"Leah said, breaking into his thoughts, "Although, Greg Kinnear is pretty dreamy in the remake."
"Mmm," Tony mumbled, but continued to stroke her hair.
Leah turned her head towards him and looked up at him, confused. "Usually you ask if you're enough dreamy for me... what's wrong?"
Tony sighed and pressed his lips to hers. "Just... thinking about things."
"What kind of things?"
"We need some time away."
"But what about your knee?"
"I can still travel on it."
"Physical therapy?"
"Don't you think we've been through enough hell today that I can skip PT to spend time with my family?"
Leah laughed and pushed herself off of his chest. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail. Her small hand gently rested on his bicep. "Going away... going away might be a good thing... I don't think... I don't think I can go back to our apartment yet. I need to get away to just... forget for a while."
Tony hated the devastated look in her eyes. He wanted nothing more than to wipe it away. He remembered the first time he'd shot someone, even though it had been justified because he had been on the job and protecting himself, it had haunted him for months afterwards. "By the time we go back there's going to be no visual evidence of what happened."
She bit down on her lower lip. "But the memory will be there...that isn't going to just disappear... I'll always carry that around that I did it."
He reached out and ran his hand up and down her arm. Shooting, killing,that wasn't a part of her job. How long was killing Wayne going to stick with her? "You keep telling me, when I complain about my recovery taking so long, that this is the better option... Well, Leah... this is the better option. You and Jack are safe and you know that I'd go to any lengths to protect you."
"I know," she whispered.
"So... then you know that I would have shot him too. If I'd been there..."
Leah did know that if he had been home the outcome would have been the same. She flopped back against him, burying herself into his embrace. "I'm glad it's over."
Tony kissed her temple a couple of times before sighing, "Yeah, me too."
"Pizza's here," Gibbs said, popping into the guest room. "Anyone hungry?"
"I am," Leah replied, climbing off the bed. She shut the TV down and turned towards her husband. "Are you coming, Tony?"
Tony nodded. "Yeah. You go on without me... something I want to do first."
Leah looked at him skeptically before following Gibbs out, closing the door behind her. Once she was gone, Tony wiggled off the bed and found his laptop. Before he could go eat his favorite pizza there was something that he had to look into buying for his wife.