For a moment they just looked like each other.
"Are you okay Marisa?" Zac asked worried.
"I'm sorry, I thought I could do this but I'm not ready."
Marisa rolled off of him and lay back down on the bed with her back to Zac.
"It's okay Marisa," Zac told her as he kissed her shoulder. "I understand completely. You have nothing to be sorry for."
Marisa turned around on her back.
"You sure?"
"Yes, of course I'm sure. You don't have to do anything you're not ready for."
"Thanks for understanding."
"Of course, I know what you're going through." Zac kissed Marisa. "We'd better go to sleep."
"Yeah we should."
Marisa snuggled into Zac's arms and together they fell asleep.
"Morning mom," Marisa spoke as she walked into the kitchen.
"Morning Marisa. Did you sleep okay?"
"Yes, I slept fine. And I think you and dad did too." Sara looked at her with a weird face. "I heard you and dad last night."
"Oh god," Sara replied embarrassed.
"You said that a lot last night," Marisa joked.
"I'm sorry. I didn't realize you heard."
"I did, but it's okay. You and dad have fun," Marisa said and she walked back to her bedroom with two cups of coffee.
"Good morning honey," Callen spoke as she walked into the kitchen and gave Sara a kiss.
"Good morning G. Marisa heard us last night."
"She did?" Callen asked embarrassed.
"Yes she did."
"I told you to be quiet," Callen joked.
"I know, but I wasn't the only one making noises," Sara replied as she put her arms around Callen's neck.
"I guess we have to stop doing that when Marisa is here."
"Yeah perhaps that's a good idea. But last night was really good."
"Yeah it totally was. I've gotta tell you, I like this side of you."
"It's the pregnancy hormones."
"I know, but I still like it."
Sara kissed Callen before she went to dress herself.
….
January 3rd Sara had a doctor's appointment. They were still off of work so Callen went with her.
"Good morning, Ms. Gonzalez," the doctor greeted them as they stepped into her office.
"Good morning doctor," Sara greeted back.
"You must be the father?" the doctor shook Callen's hand.
"Yes Greg."
"Follow me and we'll get started."
Callen and Sara followed her to the exam room. Sara sat down on the bed.
"I'm just gonna exam you first and then we'll see how the baby is doing." Sara nodded.
The doctor took her vitals and drew some blood. Her vitals were perfectly normal.
"How are you feeling so far?"
"Fine, just some morning sickness, but other than that I'm fine."
"That's good to hear. Why don't you lie down so I can examine the baby?"
Sara lay down and the doctor felt around her stomach.
"It all feels normal. Let's just see if we can find the little baby. The doctor fired up the machine and put some gel on the wand before putting it on Sara's stomach. The doctor moved it around till she found the baby.
"There's the little baby," the doctor spoke as she pointed to the screen.
"That small thing over here?" Callen asked.
"Yes, that's the baby."
"It's so small," Callen said astonished.
"Every baby starts so small honey," Sara told him.
"It's really amazing," Callen replied with a smile and Sara could see the happiness on his face.
"How far along am I doctor?"
"I'd say around 8 weeks, but I'll know precisely how long when your blood work comes in and with you next checkup."
"Alright, is everything okay so far?"
"Yes so far everything looks fine. I'd like to see you again in 2 weeks. I'll have your test results by then and we can do a more accurate reading."
"Great, thank you doctor."
The doctor gave them a picture of the ultrasound. Sara made a new appointment on the way out.
"Our first baby picture, I still can't believe it," Sara told him as they drove home.
"Me neither, but I'm really happy about it."
"Me too."
…..
January 6th they had to go back to work. Marisa still had about a month and a half left in her recuperation. She hated being sidelined. She felt fine and she wanted to come back to work.
"Good morning," Callen spoke as he and Sara walked into.
"Morning G," Sam replied. "Had a nice holiday?"
"Yes it was really nice. Loved spending it with Sara and Marisa. You?"
"Very nice. We went away for a couple of days to Sea World. How's Marisa?"
"She's doing a lot better, she's eager to come back to work."
"How long till she can come back?"
"About a month and a half. But I wouldn't be surprised if she would return sooner."
"Just like her dad," Sam said with a smile.
"Yeah, yeah," Callen replied as he sat down.
"Happy New Year everyone," Hetty spoke as she walked into the bullpen. "But I'm afraid vacation time is over. We've got a new case."
Everyone got upstairs and started working the case.
….
A week later Marisa walked into OSP.
"Good morning Ms. Mathews, I wasn't expecting you for another month," Hetty spoke.
"I know Hetty. I missed your sunny smile."
"Ha, very funny. Has the doctor cleared you yet?"
"Not for field work but I thought I could be useful here. You know paperwork, research, that sort of stuff. I can do that."
"Alright, but you're not going out into the field until the doctor has cleared you," Hetty's voice was firm.
"Agreed."
"Alright then, welcome back Ms. Mathews."
"Thanks Hetty."
Marisa walked over to the bullpen and sat down behind her desk.
"Good morning," Kensi spoke as she walked in. "You back already Marisa?'
"Just desk work, no field work yet. I was going crazy sitting at home."
"Ah, well welcome back."
"Thanks, it's good to be back."
"Hey Marisa," Callen called when he walked in with Sara. "Back already?"
"Yes, just desk work until the doctor clears me for field work."
"That's good. Welcome back."
"Thanks dad."
Just as the others walked in they heard Eric's whistling. "Got a new case."
Everyone went upstairs.
"What have we got Eric?" Callen asked as they walked in.
"This morning PO Parker was found death in his home here in LA," Eric informed them as he put the pictures of the crime scene on the big screen.
"Yuck, that looks nasty. Someone was pissed off," Deeks stated.
"Any leads so far?" Callen asked.
"No, Parker was a model marine. He's got a clean service record," Nell told them.
"Any next of kin?" Marisa asked.
"He's got a sister in Marina Del Rey, address is on your phones."
"Kensi, Deeks, you go visit his sister. Sam and I will take the crime scene. Marisa, Sara, work with Eric and Nell see what you can find on Parker."
Everyone nodded and went to work.
"So how are things between you and Sara?" Sam asked as they drove to the crime scene.
"Things are going really great." Callen wanted to tell him that Sara was pregnant but they had agreed to wait till after her next appointment. "She's living with me permanently now."
"That's great. I'm happy for you."
"Thanks Sam."
….
"How are you doing mom?" Marisa asked Sara as they were looking for any information on Parker behind their desks.
"I'm good, apart from the morning sickness."
"Have you told anyone else yet?"
"No, not yet. We have another appointment in a week. After that we'll probably gonna start telling people."
"I'm really happy for you and dad."
"Thanks. We are happy too. I still can't believe it though."
"Yeah me neither."
"How are you and Zac doing?"
"We're doing very well. I really like him. I'm just scared."
"About what sweetie?"
"About taking a step further, really trusting him."
"I know it's scary, especially after what you went through. I know it's scary to trust someone after that but you've gotta try. Not everyone is bad."
"I know. It's just… I don't know. Something is just holding me back. I'm afraid to get hurt again."
"I know sweetie. How does Zac feel about it?"
"He understands completely. But I can tell he wishes I wasn't holding back."
"I can see that he really cares about you. He likes you."
"Yeah he does. I like him too. I'm just scared."
"That's perfectly normal. Just take it slow, don't do anything you don't want to do."
"I won't mom."
Half an hour later Callen and Sam walked back into the bullpen.
"Found anything at the crime scene?" Sara asked.
"Just a laptop, but it's encrypted so that's a job for Eric," Callen replied. "How about you guys?"
"So far nothing. Nothing that would explain someone killing him."
"Maybe Kensi and Deeks did better."
"Nope," Kensi spoke as she and Deeks walked in. "His sister didn't know anyone who would wanna harm him. In fact she hadn't spoken to her brother in several months. She didn't even know he was back."
"Back from where?" Marisa asked.
"Back from his tour in Afghanistan. He left about a year ago," Sara spoke. "He just got back a few days. Nothing out of the ordinary in his service record. The mission went according to plan."
"What was the mission about?" Callen asked.
"I couldn't see. It's classified."
"I'll get in touch with his command to see if we can get some information about his mission and see if it has something to do with his death. I'll just go take this up to Eric." Callen walked upstairs. "Hey Eric, got something for you."
"Thanks," Eric replied as he took the laptop.
"Any news up here?"
"Not much. So far nothing odd in his phone records, bank records or emails."
"Have you got anything on his mission in Afghanistan?"
"Nope, it's all classified," Nell told him.
"Can you find me the phone number for his command?"
Eric started typing and dialed the number. Callen took the phone and waiting for it to be picked up.
"Commander Cooper's office," Callen heard a woman's voice.
"Hello, this is Special Agent Callen from NCIS. Can I speak to Commander Cooper, it's about PO Parker."
"Hold on one moment sir."
"Hello, Jay Cooper," the man answered the phone.
"Hello, this is Special Agent Callen from NCIS. it's about PO Parker."
"Yes I heard what happened to him. Are you investigation his case?"
"Yes we are. That's why I'm calling. I wondered if you could tell me about his mission in Afghanistan. We are trying to determine if that mission has something to do with his death."
"Yeah sure. Anything you want. I'll send the file over to you guys. But I don't think it has something to do with the mission. Everything went according to plan."
"We just wanna check it out anyway."
"That's fine. I'll send it over to you."
"Thank you." Callen hung up. "They are gonna send it over so we can check. See what you can get off the laptop."
"Will do."
Callen walked back downstairs and informed the others.
About an hour later Eric and Nell came down the stairs.
"We found something," Eric spoke as they walked into the bullpen.
"What have you got?" Callen asked.
"We've been looking through the files of the mission in Afghanistan and one guy stood out," Eric informed them as he put a picture up on the screen. "His name is Amir Nasim. They were after him cus they believed he had ties with the Taliban. Amir was killed during the mission in Afghanistan but his brother." Eric put another picture on the screen. "Kareem managed to get away. They are still searching for him. But we believe he's right here in LA."
"You think he killed Parker?" Marisa asked.
"It's possible. Parker was the one who killed his brother."
"Do you have anything to support your theory about him being in LA?"
"He came in by plane. He flew in under a false name, but by the time TCA figured who he was, Kareem was already long gone. Security cameras caught him getting into a cab. I lost the cab in airport security but Nell managed to track down the driver and the cab company told us where he dropped Kareem off."
"It was in front of Parker's apartment," Nell added.
"He didn't waste any time. He went straight from the airport to Parker's house," Kensi stated.
"Do you have any cameras at Parker's place?" Sam asked.
"No none. But we got Kareem on camera just a block from Parker's house. A car was waiting for him there. We track the car with kaleidoscope to this address," Nell spoke as she pulled up a map. "A house in Santa Monica. Address is on your phones."
"Great work. Let's go."
"Be careful G," Sara called.
"Of course, don't worry."
They pulled up to the house, fully geared up, and Callen told them the plan. They busted into the house and immediately had to duck away from flying bullets. They managed to kill everyone except Kareem. He was only shot in his shoulder. Callen and Sam took him to the boatshed and put him in interrogation.
"You've got to take me to a doctor, I've got rights," Kareem spoke with a thick accent.
"Terrorists don't have rights," Callen told him with a smirk.
"I'm not a terrorist," Kareem protested.
"No, what about this?" Callen put some pics of Parker's dead body on the table. "This is not your work?"
"No, it's not. I swear."
"You better stop lying to me right now," Callen told him in a firm voice. "We know that Parker killed you brother and we can place you at the scene around the time of the murder. You wanted revenge."
"Of course I wanted revenge. That son of a bitch shot my brother!"
"We know all about your brother and your connections to the Taliban. Who gave the order to kill Parker?"
"I did. He's my brother! I wanted to be the one who killed him and I did."
"You're gonna be spending a long time in military prison, or maybe not. Depends on which penalty you get."
"I'm not afraid to die. I did what needed to be done. Allah will decide what happens to me next."
Callen and Sam handed him over to the other agents who took him to the military prison."
"You okay G?" Sara asked once Callen and Sam stepped into the bullpen.
"Yeah I'm good. We got the guy to confess. He's on his way to military prison now."
"Good."
They finished up their paperwork before going home. Zac came over to Marisa's place.
"Hey Zac," Marisa greeted him when she opened the door.
"Hey Marisa," Zac greeted back and gave her a kiss.
"Come on in."
"Thanks, I'm glad you got off in time for this. I was really looking forward to it."
"Me too."
"So how was your first day at work?"
"Good, quiet. Just desk work so far until the doctor clears me."
"When do you have another checkup?"
"In a month."
"I'm sure the doctor will clear you then."
"I hope so, I wanna go back out into the field."
"What do like most about your job?"
"Catching the bad guys and protecting the good guys."
"That's always good."
They sat down to eat some dinner. After dinner they cleaned up and sat on the couch to watch a movie. Marisa put White House down on. Marisa leaned against him as Zac put him arm around her. They enjoyed watching the movie together.
"Do you have to do stuff like that too?" Zac asked once the movie had ended.
"Sometimes. But not with protecting the president. We protect other people."
"Must be dangerous sometimes."
"It can be dangerous sometimes. But I know how to handle situations. But of course there's always a risk of bullets flying at you. But I love it. I wouldn't want any other job."
"That's good."
"How about you? What's it like being a lawyer?"
"It's nice. Some guys are tougher than others and of course you don't always get the result you want."
"Yes that's true."
"I just hope every time I can at least give the family some closure knowing that the killer is behind bars."
"Yeah it never gets any easier telling someone their loved one is dead. I've had to do it sometimes but it's never easy."
"No it's not. I've had some cases where the killers doesn't show any sign of remorse, cases where people kill for the tiniest reasons and cases where the killer is so guilty they wish they could kill themselves."
"Yeah I know. Same here. Every case is different."
"What kind of cases do you normally deal with?" Marisa thought about it for a moment. Could she tell him a little bit about what she did? "Or is that classified?"
"Yeah it kinda is. But I deal with a lot of different cases. Murders, abductions, sensitive information being leaked, basically everything."
"Sounds interesting."
"It is."
Zac stayed the night with Marisa.
"Goodnight Zac."
"Goodnight Mari." Zac gave her a kiss.
Marisa snuggled into his arms and together they fell asleep.
…..
Today Callen and Sara had another doctor's appointment. It was before work so Callen went with her. They waited until the doctor called them in. After shaking her hand they sat down.
"Well I've got your test results here and everything looks perfectly normal," the doctor told them. Sara and Callen let out a relieved sigh. "Let's go check on the baby shall we."
Sara and Callen followed the doctor to the exam room and Sara lay down on the bed and pulled her shirt up. Callen smiled as he could already see a little bump there already. The doctor put the machine on and put some gel on the wand before putting it on Sara's stomach. They could see the baby a bit clearer now.
"You're a bit further along that I originally thought. You're 12 weeks now," the doctor informed them. "But the baby is doing very well."
"That's good to hear."
"If you follow me to my desk I'll calculate your due date." Callen and Sara followed her to the desk and waited anxiously for the due date. "You're due August 1st."
"Alright."
"So if you have no further questions I'll see if you in 4 weeks."
"No, we have no questions."
"Alright see you in 4 weeks then."
Callen and Sara made an appointment before driving to work.
"Shall we tell the others now about the baby?" Sara asked as they were in the car.
"That's fine with me."
Callen pulled up the OSP and Sara wanted to get out but he stopped her. Before Sara could say anything Callen kissed her.
"I love you," Callen told her.
"I love you too. You ready to tell the others?"
"Yes I am. I wanted to tell them weeks ago."
They walked into the bullpen and luckily everyone was there already. Callen called Nell and Eric down and called Hetty over from her office.
"What's going on Mr. Callen?" Hetty asked eager to know why Callen had called everyone together.
"We have some wonderful news to tell you. Sara and I are expecting a baby," Callen told them with a smile on his face.
"A baby? No way?! Congrats man," Sam told him and he gave him a hug.
The others congratulated them as well.
"How far along are you?" Kensi wanted to know.
"12 weeks. Here this picture we just got at the doctor's."
Sara showed them the ultrasound picture. Everyone was so happy for them.
"So that's why you were so happy lately," Sam told his partner.
"Yes, I wanted to tell you sooner but we agreed to wait till the next appointment."
"I'm happy for you man."
"Thanks."
"So Marisa, you're getting a baby brother or sister," Deeks spoke.
"Yes I am. And I'm really happy for mom and dad."
Today was a slow day so Sara and Kensi sat talking about the pregnancy and things that had to do with babies."
After work Marisa went over to Zac's place. When she got there the door was open and it looked like the door had been kicked in.