Disclaimer: I own nothing. Not Gibbs, not Ari, no one do I own. This is all for amusement. There I said it, now can someone have Ari put the gun down slowly…

STORY INFORMATION

Summary: Evelyn Matthews came to NCIS with one goal in mind, to get close to Agent Gibbs. But how exactly do you go about telling a man that you're his dead daughter?

Pairings: EVENTUAL Ari/Evelyn(Kelly)-ARLYN SHALL RULE THE WORLD-

Tate

Tony/Evie friendship

Ducky/Audrey (Other pairings will appear when I decide)

Warnings: Greyish! Eli, Neutral! Ziva

NOTE: Things I lack knowledge of I have researched from the internet, and while I do try to make sure information is accurate as can be determined some things may not be, so I apology before hand for any mistakes or ignorance on my part.

I also want to thank, UnknownFlux, HannahbananaJane, JainaSyal, skeeter88, stargatesg1973, Notheronebitesdadust21, smilin steph, bulletproofdeath, Leonarange, torontogirl12, wisergirl71301, LovelyxLittlexLauren, Rayne90, janno, Kendra29, Hope'sFace, lexilia, Annie016, KrisShannon, StarlightShivers, MismatchedSocksandKnickers, 1956johndeere50, Amelia Jessica Pond Williams, BrianB1126, calliegirl63, leoniebroeder94, Sirius7, byLunaA, SecretsAreHiddenByMe, Too Hard to Be Called Love, BurnedSpy, NikkiAlex, adrienmaciel, Annie016, bakaprincess85, spikewil, thelauers918, Animanga-smile14, Nicole1314, Trance20666, Viivs0612, sophiemom01, Rika92, Callipygian, EisForElephant, EzziBA, Curiouser-and-Curiouser101, Annika Sparks, CryDevil, Monochrome13, PayShaFan, Cosmos89, doggy bye, goldengloss, GibbsTonyZivaTim, CSIflea, FictionWriter09, ange1993, RedRiver21, winterhail, Tenshi of Heaven, MusicLover500, TwilightLover162, Romantic Journalist, JrSnape, xLyraCharlottex, JamesBond2007, Lizzy2586, SkullKey4758, Shades-Soul, lightningx94, ihateyoubaby, GryffindorWolfSlytherinHybrid, I am One with the Wind and Sky, OzNCISLover, Suddenly Psychotic, ElizabethMartin101, summercampgoddess, LTree16, RedEyedSurprise, katgirl9585, EmeraldFox01, Flausch, RAD092515, and andrewjeeves for the favs!

I want to thank, Dricsj, Gibbs Girl Kelly, HannahbananaJane, JainaSyal, Lady Knight Aria of Haven, Notheronebitesdadust21, Probie girl1717, UnknownFlux, cheether, chrissypotter, Leonarange, lexilia, pavinet, torontogirl12, skeeter88, stargatesg1973, wisegirl71301, OzNCISLover, Kendra29, andrewjeeves, Fantasyfictionwriter, XxstarburstmonterxX, alterangirl, cookie62, kc5mzr, LovelyxLittlexLauren, Rayne90, faith1430709, jbn42, jrfan2383, yadoonkeenjaani, BONES-LOVER-94, FourHorses, IwouldrockJoshuaJacksonsWorld, lauram314, Angel-Lilly16, Captain Kathryn Janeway98, Jeremy Kelly, TivaBelieva.x.x.x, KrisShannon, Tris Holmes, Jenna Craig, MismatchedSocksandKnickers, jtr1812, Amelia Jessica Pond Williams, BrianB1126, calliegirl63, leoniebroeder94, CSIflea, MDDC26, Sirius7, amurdock42, byLunaA, buffy1242, Too Hard To Be Called Love, starchild295, swimgeek2007, Lady Isabelle Black, vampireacademyrulz797, Arkansas Sweetheart, Sweetest-Time, janno, Russian Flower, SimplyReBECca, GraceSong, Marauders Twilight, NikkiAlex, horsegirlrule, adrienmaciel, Alpha Centarus, Angelus320, Dreamspirit47, MrsScott323, bakaprincess85, mitchievw, potiongirl1992, Nicole1314, Trance20666, Viivs0612, cwatker222, Mal4Inara, sophiemom01, Pandora'sBox11, Callipygian, EzziBA, Curiouser-and-Curiouser101, leFlame, LadyMary33, swanqueen4, PayShaFan, Angelhaggis, starwarsfan1000, goldengloss, GibbsTonyZivaTim, Irjuni92, pinkrangerforever, persephone829, Forest Angel, RedRiver21, Nightwing's Gal, Emerald Pixie Dust, peacesista123, RogueShadow94, TwilightLover162, x-xLittle-Miss-Brown-Eyesx-x, x-X-x-Donna-x-X-x, xLyraCharlottex, Danielle89, Dark Alana, JamesBond2007, Lizzy2586, SocietyMember, SkullKey4758, Shades-Soul, tomboy4997, ihateyoubaby, lachicarebelde22, D3ANwasH3R3, othlvr16, GryffindorWolfSlytherinHybrid, Firecrane930, Dreamsb223, I am One With the Wind and Sky, Paddy and Moony's Angel, Suddenly Psychotic, gotta-love-acheron, Ugla, Willow Tree 26, Soccergirl0388, Collingwood39, Jowin28, sammyboyaldaway, BoredZero, RedEyedSurprise, katgirl9585, EmeraldFox01, Stars2008, Darkwitch716, NavyGirl05, bloodshadows and zebraclrgard for all the follows!

I apologize if I missed anyone, if I did just give me a shout out like 'Mirror, how could you?' Seriously all PMs are welcomed. :D And I know I lost some favs, and follows, but I'm keeping y'all on here anyways.

Wanna give a special thanks to, SocietyMember, JrSnape, cwatker22, Buckeye Am I, LTree16, RidingAngelxspy, Someone, and bloodshadows for the reviews! THANK Y'ALL! If I have missed you and your review, or follow, or fav, just PM and I'll fix that.

Guest Reviews:

RidingAngelxspy: *lots of hugs* I like being able to talk and connect with reviewers. I think it helps me be a better writers, and seeing your reviews makes my day. Wow, thank you so much. Aw, stop your making me blush. :D Yeah, the whole Ziva and Evelyn thing made me laugh when I wrote it. Ziva is always so painfully blunt (at least, that's what I think) that's what I love about her. I hope your muse is talking to you, and you have fun with your writing. Yeah, Spooks is a good show. The season I'm focusing are the ones with Richard Armitage (Season 7 to 9), though I will warn you they kill more main character than the walking dead. Lol Have fun watching.

Someone: Thank you. :D Yeah, I know. I always have this problem where when I'm typing really fast I will forget words or use the wrong variation of them sometimes. I'm going back and combing over the previous chapters and editing them because I see the mistake now after rereading them. YES! I love Bishop too! I was so worried they were going to make her a copy of Kate or Ziva, but thankfully NCIS knows how to work the magic and made her an interesting quirky character. Hmm, I don't know about in this one. I have it pretty much planned out to the end, but I have pondered in the AU TGiM: Spooks Edition, to have her in a couple of chapters. Nothing big or anything but I like her and I really want to write for her. Thanks again. :D

Author's Note: I promise the next chapter will be up…the quickest two weeks, the longest a month and a half. I have the ending of this story pretty much already done, just waiting to add finishing chapters. The chapter or two chapters that will connect this chapter to the ending chapters I haven't even begun. So, I'm going to do my best to get working on it and hopefully you all will see it soon. :D

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

"The Moments That Count"

There were moments…

Moments that slipped by, moments that lasted forever. Moments that break you, and moments that define you. Shannon and Kelly's deaths were such a moment for Gibbs. It was a moment that defined him. If it had not been for their deaths, he didn't think he would have been here today. He certainly would not have been at NCIS. Yet, Kelly didn't die? Remember? His mind told him, a combination of taunting and yet soothing at the same time. It was hard even now, to wrap his mind around it. To try and process it all.

He needed answers. He needed them from Evelyn. Gibbs stared down at the paperwork upon his desk, and the urge to toss it angrily into the trash hit him once more because honestly he had more important things to deal with. Before he could into that urge however, his cell phone went off. He closed his eyes in frustration, heaving a deep sigh before picking the cell phone up and flipping it open. "Gibbs," he barked, pressing the phone to his ear.

"Good evening, Jethro."

"Tobias." Gibbs didn't have time to deal with the man at this moment. He didn't know where Evelyn was and he had this sinking feeling in his chest. I've lost her again, he couldn't help, but think as his heart thundered in his ears. I've lost her again.

"Looking for Evelyn?" Fornell stated, in his usual infuriating way.

Gibbs froze, then his brows furrowed and his eyes narrowed. He clutched his phone tightly and he glanced at Kate and Tony who were in a deep discussion. He heard his and Evelyn's name several times, and Gibbs pinched his brow. "And how do you exactly know that, Tobias?" Gibbs bit out.

"I have my ways," Fornell chuckled.

"And you called for…?" Gibbs cracked his neck, trying to work the tension out of his neck. This had been the longest day of his life. The only other day that rivaled this one was the day he found out about Shannon and Kelly.

"Evelyn is at her home, Gibbs."

Everything just froze. The whole world came to a sudden stand still as the words sunk in. Then Gibbs barked out, "What?"

"She is at her home," Fornell repeated, nonchalantly. "One of my personnel drove her home."

His stomached twisted violently, and a spark of bitterness rose in his chest. "What the hell are doing with my agent, Fornell?" He barked out, his gut telling him that there was a lot more to this than Fornell deciding to be helpful. "You know what? It doesn't matter right. I have to go see Evelyn and-"

"I…would advise against that," Fornell said.

"And what makes you think I'm going to take your advice, Tobias?" Gibbs snapped, angrily.

"Because the kid was barely standing on her own two feet, Gibbs!" Fornell snapped back, and surprisingly sounded just as angry. "She looked like she had been just put through hell and back and you want to know who I think is to blame?"

Gibbs fell silent. Guilt stabbed him in the gut, and twisted mercilessly. He closed his eyes and bowed his head with a heavy sigh, snapping his phone shut. He had to see her. He needed to see her. But the question was would Evelyn want to see him? No, not right at this moment. He threw his phone down on his desk, his heart pulling him two different direction as his emotions were hitting a boiling point. He had always fought for a tight control of his emotions, but that control was gone.

And damn, he really wanted to hit something. Hard.

He drew in deep, uneven breaths in an attempt to settle his heart that was racing in his chest like a jackhammer. How could she not have told him? How could she not have made an attempt to? No, she tried, his brain told him and he recalled all those times she looked at him with the weight of the world hanging in her eyes like it was about to come plummeting down and crush her. He just couldn't understand why he hadn't figured it out earlier. Looking back now, maybe he had been purposefully blind to it. Unable to let himself connect the dots because that meant cutting open old wounds.

And yet…someone should have known. The labs should have made the connection. DNA testing was required. Evelyn's test should have alerted someone that she was his daughter…Gibbs's eyes narrowed, as the cogs in his mind started turning. Someone had known that she was his daughter. And someone had tried to cover it up. Gibbs's saw red as he marched up the stairs towards the Director's office, not bothering to spare Tony and Kate who looked at him worriedly a glance. He passed Morrow's secretary who fumbled with words trying to get him to wait a minute, and slammed into the Director's office without preamble.

Morrow jumped, whirling around from the windows and towards Gibbs. There was a look in his eyes, a knowing that looked like it aged him about ten years.

"We need to talk, Director," Gibbs glared at Morrow.

The older man sighed, knowing this had been coming for a long time now. "About Agent Matthews, I take it?" Director Morrow asked, walking around his desk. There was a sense of sadness knowing that he was going to be leaving it all behind, but he had been offered a promotion. One he couldn't afford to pass on. "Fornell told me she was in quite a state when she made it home last night."

Gibbs twitched slightly. He didn't like how helpful Fornell was being keeping an eye on Evelyn the way he was, it left a bad taste in Gibbs's mouth and too many unanswered questions for his liking. "Did you know?" Gibbs demanded. "Did you know that Evelyn Matthews was my daughter? Did you know that she was Kelly? Is that why you didn't tell me? To cover up an old NIS mistake?"

Morrow's head jerked up, shocked. "She's Kelly? Your Kelly?" The Director braced himself on his desk, weakly.

Gibbs paused. "You didn't know?" He asked.

"I knew she was your daughter," Morrow admitted, after a brief moment of silence. He watched the anger flare up in Gibbs, and held his hands in surrender. "You can get angry at me all you want Gibbs, but you know that I do not get involved in my agents personal affairs. It's a recipe for disaster, you know that better than most."

Gibbs made a noise of rage. It reverberated through his entire body before settling in his hands, and the urge to hit something came back tenfold. Instead, he curled his hands into fists at his side and he glowered at the Director. "Does anyone else know?" Gibbs demanded, angrily. When Morrow didn't answer right now, Gibbs took a step towards him and repeated, "Does anyone else know?"

Morrow made a noise. "You're anger is understandable, Jethro," the Director said, genially. "But acting on it-"

"Who else knew?" Gibbs demanded, slamming the palms of his hand down on the Director's desk.

Morrow stood there contemplating for a long moment before he straightened his spine. "Fornell," the Director said, and he watched Gibbs's face blanch in fury. "And normally I would tell you to not doing anything, for political reason, but you aren't going to be my problem anymore so really what do I care?"

Gibbs quirked up an eyebrow. "You firing me?" He asked, lightly. Suddenly Fornell covering Evelyn's six made sense, at least in part. Fornell and him a long, antagonizing friendship, but Gibbs was certain there was more to it than that. And he was going to find out, and when he did the other man was in for a world of hurt when Gibbs got a hold of him.

"No," Morrow shook his head. "I've been offered a deputy director's position at Homeland Security."

"And who exactly is replacing you, sir?" Gibbs asked, his lips dipped downward in a frown. A horrifying thought occurred to him. "Not me."

The Director, or ex as it was, laughed. "Much as I like you, Jethro, I would not shoot NCIS in the head," Morrow said, chuckling before pressing the button on his intercom. "Please send her in."

Gibbs took a step back away from the desk, and turned to the doors that parted. He felt a bolt of shock rush through him as a familiar red walked through the doors. Jennifer Shepard's lips pulled back in a somewhat taunting smile as she came face to face with Gibbs. "Hello, Jethro," she replied, a glint in her eyes. "Should we skip the 'You haven't changed a bit' bull?"

"Why start lying to each other now, Jen?" Gibbs shot back, quickly gathering his wits about him. No matter how shocking Jenny's reappearance and what it meant was, he had other priorities at the moment. Like an FBI agent to track down and have a word with.

"Any problems taking orders from me?" Jenny countered, smoothly.

"As director, or as a woman?" Gibbs fired back, striding over to the doors.

"Either," Jenny raised an eyebrow.

"That was six years ago," Gibbs sent her a dry look. "The past won't be a problem. Now, if you will excuse me, I have a FBI agent to shoot." With that Gibbs walked past Jenny, and out the doors leaving the red head with a rather flummoxed expression on her face.

"An FBI agent to shoot…" Jenny repeated his words slowly and sent an inquiring look over at Morrow. "Mind telling me what that is all about," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. Her expression was fierce and her eyes set in a glare. She didn't know whether it was from being so easily dismissed by Jethro, or the dark foreboding sensation that a hefty amount of paperwork and ass kissing she was going to have to do with the Director of the FBI that had her in an instant foul mood. But at least, Morrow was here to take the brunt of it.

Morrow just sighed.

"You are sure you are okay? You don't need me to come to the hospital because I will-"

"Honey child, I am fine! Besides, Ducky is here and he is taking good care of me," her grandmother reassured, and Evelyn slumped down sitting on the toilet in relief. She faintly heard Ducky voice then Audrey giggle. Straight up, she giggled. If it had been any other day, Evelyn would have made a teasing remark, instead a sob ripped up her throat and she pressed her hand to her mouth. "Evelyn, are you still there?"

"Y-yeah, I'm still here," she managed to choke out. Audrey got hurt because of her. Gibbs got hurt because of her. She always ended up hurting those that she loved, unintentionally. Guilt and remorse built a knot in the back of her throat and she fought valiantly to keep her voice calm through the rest of her conversation with Audrey.

"Well, you take care now. And don't worry about the police, I will be dealing with them you just wait and see," was Audrey's last words before the line went dead.

Evelyn sat there for several moments, staring at the walls of her bathroom before she mustered up the energy to get up to her feet. She turned slowly, and braced herself against the sink as a wave of nausea rolled through her. "Fuck…my…life," she said, each word dripping with exhaustion and frustration. Her head was throbbing from all the crying she had done, and she had to admit she was more than a little embarrassed to have broken down and cried in Ari's arms.

Evelyn looked up at her pale reflection, before she ran her hands across her face with a deep, heavy sigh rippling through her. The water had long since gotten cold, and Ari had left to let her get dressed. She shakily slipped her red t-shirt over her head, white hot needles prickling through her fingers as feeling came back to them. Her mind was at war with her heart. Her mind was telling her it was only logical for her father to have been upset, but her heart still stung with hurt. Pressing the heels of her palms against her eyes, she drew in a long breath and held it for ten second before slowly releasing it. Wiping her eyes trying to erase any trace of tears, she picked up her grey shorts and slipped them on.

In the next moment, she was shoving out the bathroom door and down the hall. The wooden floor felt cold, and hard against the soles of her feet. The world around her felt distance, and far away as she tried mulling through her emotions, and it was all too soon did she find herself in the living room. She was a bit embarrassed, if she was truthful with herself. It always happened when she let her emotions get the best of her, and today with her father had evoked feelings of the heart-wrenching kind that was really better left alone. Her fingers gently pressed against her throat as if trying to quell her racing pulse when Ari made his reappearance.

His dark eyes drank her in. To her still too pale face, to the wounded look in her eyes and his stomach clenched tightly. It was a helpless kind of anger that threatened to swallow him up from the inside out, but he held it back. Being angry would not help anyone right now, least of all Evelyn. He never expected his life to change like this. To have Evelyn change something inside of him, and it felt he had been given a new lease on life. He fought the urge to be lured into such a false sense of security. His father would come, send handlers or assassin-he already had-and he knew that his father may never stop trying to find him, ever.

Yet when Evelyn smiled at him…he lost all sense of reality and wished to linger in these moments with her because he knew they may be all he will ever get. "Here," he held out a steaming cup of chamomile tea to her. "It will help get you warm."

Evelyn blinked, jolting ever so slightly. Then her shoulders relaxed, and she reached out taking the cup from him. She gave him the best smile she could muster up. "You know what's really sad?" She said, with a laugh while twisting the tea bag through the cup of steaming water. "Is that I think you've made better use of this kitchen in last few weeks than I have in all the time I've lived in this house."

"That is not surprising," Ari commented, setting his cup down on the table before he sat back against the couch, looking every inch of relaxed and Evelyn would have believed it, if she did not know Ari like she did. Ari never relaxed, not fully. It was like he always wanting for the other shoe to drop, and Evie could sympathize with the feeling. Slowly she sat down right beside him.

"And why is that?" She quirked up an eyebrow.

"You do not think of this as your home," he said, as if it were the most obvious thing. "So you do not treat it like one."

Evelyn sat there, her face froze in contemplation before she curled her legs up onto the couch in front of her. "That actually does make a sad sort of sense now that I think about it," she said, with a pitiful attempt at laughter. "What would it take to make this place home for you?" He asked, his hand coming to rest upon her knee and his fingers lazily caressing circles into her skin. Tonight he could not bear the silence, and he knew that Evelyn needed the distraction.

The tea was warm, and tasted slightly like flowers as she sipped it thankful for the darkness of the room so Ari couldn't see her cheeks burning red. It was strange how one touch from him could sooth away all her nerves. Her mind told her she was entering dangerous territory, but Evelyn knew she had done that the second she had put her trust in Ari. There was no going back, not anymore. But did that mean she should just…plunge into whatever this was between them? She chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully, before shaking her head side to side. "I'm honestly not sure," Evelyn said, looking down straight into her cup of tea. She could see her eyes reflected there, and for a moment, it took her a moment to recognize they were hers. Taking a deep breath, she looked up and frowned. "What…is that?" Her eyes rested on a strange metal briefcase that sat upon her coffee table. Her eyes flickered from it to Ari, warily.

"Some thing I had to pick up," Ari stated, his eyes inspecting the lock. It was still intact, and there were no signs of it being tampered with much to his relief. "I leave a suitcase with money, passport, ID and clothes in case of emergencies in several places. When one has lived the life I have, it is best to be prepared."

"Don't you sound like a boy scout," she mused, loftily.

Ari's lips twitched. "Far from it," he commented, dryly. He pushed in the code, and heard the lock faintly click. Carefully, he lifted the lid and saw the cash. Stacks of it, all in American money and he shifted it out of the way to get to his passport and kit for making his additional identities and his small laptop. While he put a certain amount of trust in Fornell, he would prepare an out just in case the man tried to double cross him. He put that all aside to reveal a set of casual clothes, and when he picked up the clothes, he felt Evelyn draw in a sharp breath.

Beneath the clothes were more weapons, two guns and several types of knives. "…you certainly know how to pack, don't you?" Evie tried to joke, but there was a catch in her voice that made it fall flat. Ari always had an out, and it hadn't occurred to her until this moment that he could not stay here forever. That he wouldn't stay here forever. She should have felt relief, but all she felt was a cold, hollowness settle in the pit of her stomach. "You know you might want to put that money in the bank. Seriously," she said, when he glanced at her as he carefully inspected his weapons, "someone is going to rob you." Then as an afterthought, she added, "Hell, I might rob you."

He laughed softly. "Let me spare you, yakirati. If you want it, then it yours. I have several other briefcases hidden away, not to mention I've got an off shore back account I've directed money to for years."

"Money you've got…how?" She frowned.

"From criminals. Not to mention the hefty paychecks I received from Mossad," he stated, not in the least bit unnerved. He would tell her if she asked, he felt no need to hide himself or make excuses with Evelyn. He would give her the complete truth because he felt she deserved that at least for all the trouble she had gone through for him. "Take it if you want it. You certainly have shared with me."

She sent him a look, one he had come to realize that she was debating on laughing or slapping him. He preferred the former. "First off, I don't need your money. Audrey gave me a trust fund, and with her help, my children's children won't need a job. Two, I share everything with you to keep you safe. Not for profit," she glared hard at him.

"I've offended you," Ari murmured.

"You bet you have," Evie snapped. It irked her that he would ever believe she was doing all this to get something from him. She didn't want anything from him. At least…nothing he could give, and nothing she should want because it would end up bad and imploded in her face.

Ari stared at her for a long moment. Living with Evelyn put him in a situation that he was not entirely sure of himself. He could see that she was drawn to him, but she was still reluctant to share her sanctuary with anyone else. He could see it at times where she would practically vibrate with tension, and he did not blame her. It was obvious to anyone that Evelyn's peace was hard won, and she gave it up when she pulled him from the cold garage floor and took him home. "I'm sorry, yakirati," he said, sincerely. "It was not my intention to offend you. I only wish to repay you for all that you have sacrificed for me."

Evelyn stared straight into his gaze, and then left out a huffy sort of sigh. "I wish you wouldn't look at me like that," she told him, looking down at her tea cup. She pondered asking what the word yakirati meant, but shrugged it off not sure if she would get a straight answer.

"Look at your like what?" Ari inquired.

"Like you know me better than I know myself," she said, running her thumbs gently over the lip of the cup trying to pretend the fluttering in her chest never happened, and the familiar spark of heat that Ari ignited when he looked at her like that didn't happened.

"I do know you," Ari told her, very serious. She was the opposite of him in everyway. He was the ice-cold waters out in artic seas. Isolated, and alone where there was nothing, but the constant struggle for survival. She was the warm ocean that could be moody, playful as easily as she could be wild and untamable. She put herself out into the world, out of her comfort zone to try to rebuild a life with her loved ones, while Ari built a wall of armor, using his survival instincts and years of training to keep the world as far as away as possible.

And she had snuck past those walls, and made him want things. He wanted a life with her, to be able to lie beside her at night and feel her breathing while she slept.

"Hmm, really?" Evelyn gave him an indulgent sort of smile, not really believing at all. Ari caught the tone in her voice, and shifted to where he faced her straight on.

"I know that you when you are painting that you hum songs underneath your breath. I know that when you are sad or frightened you play the piano. I know that every time you truly smile you look down at the ground," Ari listed off, calmly and without hesitation. "Your shame is that you feel too much, and you feel too deep. You don't think you have a right to feel the things you do, so you try to bottle them up inside because you don't wish for those around you to see your struggle," Ari finished, and Evelyn stared at him mouth agape. "You're going to catch flies."

Her mouth shut with a snap, and she narrowed her eyes upon him. "How…how did…" She couldn't muster up a coherent reply and drew in a sharp breath. She held for several seconds, then let it out. "You noticed…all of that?" Her voice was softer this time, just shy of being meek.

"I notice everything about you."

Such simple words, and they made Evelyn feel so much. Her heart felt like it would swell out of her chest, and she was rendered completely speechless. Swallowing thickly, she dropped her gaze away from Ari's in order to be able to breath once more and she found herself asking, "What about you? What shame do you have?"

He tipped her chin up, forcing her to meet his gaze. "My shame is that I'm entirely capable of doing terrible things without mercy, without emotion. I cannot change or erase it, I am what I am and I will not make excuses for it." He had made the statement looking straight into her eyes, wanting her to see the ugly truth to his declaration. And she did. However, she knew that there was more to Ari than that too.

"I won't ask you to," Evelyn said, softly. And she meant that, she really did mean that. Her blue eyes roamed around the room while Ari shifted through his things in silence, and her gaze from its way to her cellphone. It sat several feet out of distance beside the TV where Ari had deposited it before getting her clothes. She stared at it, longingly.

"You want to call him," Ari observed, neutrally.

"Yeah…I do…" Evelyn murmured, lightly. There were so many things she wanted to say, so many things she needed to get out. But she didn't have it in her to do it tonight. Not when her heart took such a heavy blow. She need tonight to get herself all in order, to piece herself back together because she was sure she could face Gibbs right now, and not breakdown. Taking in a deep breath she looked away from the cellphone, she said softly, "Tomorrow. I'll talk to him tomorrow."

She pressed her eyes closed, the days events flickering through her mind to torture her once more. It was a day of regrets, and she just wished she could take them all back. "I knew it was going to hurt him," Evelyn groaned, throwing her head back against the couch while pressing her hands against her forehead. "How could it not? I just brought up one of the worst moments of his life, and that kind of pain just never goes away. I, of all people, should know that. And I mean, an interrogation room of all places to tell him? God, why…do I screw everything up?"

"He is the one who screwed up, Evelyn. Not you," Ari stated, his eyes dark with irritation and anger. On her behalf? Or maybe just because he dislike anything Gibbs? Evie wasn't entirely sure.

"While I appreciate that, I don't think you understand fully-" Evelyn began, softly, but a sharp look from Ari made her practically swallow her tongue.

"I understand it completely," his voice sounded lethal, and dangerous and it made the hair on the back of her neck raise up in apprehension.

"What…" She cleared her throat. "What do you mean?"

He hadn't meant for that to slip out. His tongue had gotten away from him before he could help it. It was always did when he was reminded of that time. If Ari was ever asked when he did truly become the monster that he was, he would say it all started then. It had been the beginning of his spiraling downfall, and though she would likely never know it, if Evelyn had never came into his life, he probably would have continued on falling until someone killed him. "You show me yours," he finally said, a strained smile on his face. "I'll show you mine."

Her brows pinched, but there was a consideration in her eyes. She couldn't say she wasn't curious. There was a hunger in her, a need to know more about Ari and to try construe together what exactly made him tick. "Do you really mean that?" She asked, softly and shifting towards him so she could look straight at his face. "If I told you my story…would you really tell me yours?"

Ari looked directly at her, his eyes flickering a deep golden-brown. For a moment she was stunned by the vibrant color, but then the color swirled and darkened. It was as if she was suddenly look into a empty, fathomless depths and she envied how easily he could switch off his emotions. How he could be so hard for her to read, and yet read her as if she were some open book for him to flip through. Then suddenly, his expression eased and his smile became less strained. "I do," he said, lightly.

It was staggering how those two honest words made tears fill her eyes. She gave him a smile before looking down at her hands, the tea had long since gone cold only leaving a faint reminder of heat within her hands. Her brows furrowed as she tried to piece together her story inside her mind, pulling all the jumbled pieces all into a row before she told him. And she wanted to tell him. She hadn't told anyone her full story, except Audrey. She had never felt the need, until now.

Several seconds drift by in silence, and finally Evelyn closed her eyes, her head falling against the side of the couch. Her shoulders sag, and her hands quiver around her cold tea cup. "My mother and I…saw something we shouldn't have," said Evelyn, her voice so tiny she feared perhaps he didn't hear it. "It landed us in the Witness Protection of NCIS-it was NIS back then-and we were sold out, or something because on the way to our safe house when it all happened." She felt Ari's hands clasp gently over her trembling ones, and he lifted the tea cup from her hands before setting it down on the table. He then took repossession of her hands, and she couldn't help but notice how his hands totally engulfed her tiny ones.

"I remember the sound of the glass breaking and then the driver's head just snapping to the side, and the blood. I remember the entire world spinning, and the screaming…then suddenly it stopped. Everything just stopped," Evelyn said, leaning closer towards him. His arms winding around her brought her more comfort than she would like to admit. "I don't remember much after that. Just brief flashes, and things…things in my nightmares. Everything else is just blackness, like the end of movie with no credits. Just…darkness.

"Then suddenly I woke up in a hospital with no clue to who I was," Evie stated, softly. "For years, I didn't remember who I was. I was passed through the system because no…no one came for me. No one claimed me. At least, until I met Audrey. I had no idea what to make of her, you know. I was…such a brat," she said, with a laugh. "I tried to drive that woman insane, push her to give me up because that's what everyone else did. But she didn't. She stayed with me, patiently and gave me a place to belong that I hadn't had before. At least, that I could remember."

"How did you remember?" Ari asked, quietly. The lack of childhood photos, the paranoia, all of it suddenly making sense in his head. He felt angry for her, for all that she endured because people like Evelyn, bright and shining, should never have to see the darker places in the world. The places that he dwells in.

"I…I had tumor growing on my brain," she said, her fingers brushing over the scar that was hidden just underneath the edge of her hair. "When they took it off…I guess, it was a chain reaction and next thing I knew, the more days that passed by the more I remembered and the more I remembered the more…the more I just wanted to come home," she finished softly. The house felt silent, too silent when she finished her story. "Audrey…she's the only one who knows the full truth about me," Evelyn stated, her voice watery. "And well, now you do too."

Ari stayed silent, and she was grateful for that. She needed a moment to reing in her emotions that threatened to boil up violently. She took deep even breaths, and wrapped her around her midsection before peering up at him with a shaky grin and blinking her watery eyes. "I told you mine," she said, softly. "You tell me yours. Quid pro quo, and all that."

His lips briefly quirked up at her joke, before his face became something hard and brooding. He turned his dark eyes away from her as he called forth the past inside his head, and she shifted beside him. Leaning towards him in an unconscious effort to sooth him, and he released a hefty sigh. "Tali was someone special to me," Ari stated, softly. Evie blinked at him, surprised, but stayed silent while her hand absentmindedly played with the buttons of his shirt. He took a deep breath, and shifted to cradled her head with his hand. His fingers running through the copper strands, admiring their silkiness. "I didn't know the truth. Not until later that she was. I had always believed her to be my sister," he commented, sounding very far off. "Looking back, I wonder how I was so blind."

"Blind to what?" Evelyn asked, gently.

He craned his head so he could look down into her inquiring eyes. "She was my daughter," he admitted, and he felt a jolt run through Evelyn's body.

Evelyn suddenly felt it very hard to breath. "H-how?" She blurted out, without thinking. She pulled back slightly, then shook her head. "No, don't answer that. You don't have to answer," she told him, while her mind went reeling. She couldn't help, but draw parallels to her situation and the information that Ari just presented. She shoved it all down, and stared at Ari while nibbling on her bottom lip nervously.

Ari flashed her a small smile. "First off, stop that," he said, grasping her jaw softly and used it thumb to pull her bottom lip free from her teeth. "It's very distracting," he smirked, and Evelyn turned red. "Secondly…I think I need to tell you," he added, his expression more serious than before.

Evelyn watched he pulled back, and his eyes were hooded lost in thought for several minutes. She could always see a heavy weight on Ari's shoulder, but this was something more. This was a weight created by grief, and not just any grief. The kind of grief created by an unimaginable loss.

"People like me are trained from birth in a number of things," Ari began, as Evelyn settled back into the couch. "Medical. Combat. Seduction," he added, lastly. "It was during one of my session with my instructor learning how to control…my reactions that Tali was created."

He paused, letting that settle in and he saw the emotions flicker across her face. First shock, then it quickly spiraled into anger, and then a sadness for him. It was touching that she felt all those for him, and he felt a weight ease from his chest. "They trained you…in that?" Her lips pursed when he nodded in confirmation. "How old were you?" Was her next question.

"Barely a teen," Ari answered.

Evelyn didn't know what to say. Her palms went slick, and she felt a rage boil in her gut. A knot built in the back of her throat, and she wanted to punch something. Hard. She drew in a deep breath, keeping her face carefully poised knowing that Ari did not want pity from anyone. "Go on," she said, lightly.

"I did not know about the child until after I was sent to England. My father sent word to me about it. The woman, my tutor, she thought to use my child to gain influence with my father. It did the exact opposite. My father said he took her to a safe house to spend the rest of her pregnancy," Ari stated, with a weighty sigh. "Several months later, he said there had been a leak. That the safe house had been compromised, and that the instructor…and my child were killed."

"Ari…" Evelyn stared at him, with wide eyes.

"I didn't appreciate it right then. It was hard to mourn something that you don't have truly any concept of, but then a couple of years later…when I returned home, I met Tali," Ari said, his fingers slipping naturally through hers. He held her hand tightly. "My father introduced her as my sister and I had no reason to doubt him. No reason to suspect otherwise," Ari said, his jaw clenching tightly. "She was the light of my life. The second I saw her…I knew I had to protect her, always. I know she felt it too, because she became my shadow. Everywhere I went, she would follow," he said, and for a brief moment his voice cracked.

Evelyn watched his chest rise and fall for a few minutes, as he carefully placed his mask back together again before continuing on. "My father encouraged it. He encouraged my spending time with Tali," he commented, off-handedly. "I wonder if it was out of guilt, or out of spite. Maybe it was both…" He huffed out a long sigh. "It was by accident I found out the truth. I had become…disenchanted with Mossad and the ways of my father. I wanted out, so I tried to find some leverage that would give me the means to freedom. Instead I found of that Tali was my child. I suppose he knew that if I knew about her that I would have never continued to be his mole. That I would have taken her and left…" He remembered the day he found out quite clearly. He remembered anger, and unimaginable anger fill him up. He remembered going to his father, he remembered pointing the gun and Tali to step in the way. He remembered the look she sent him that day. The look of betrayal haunted him.

That day…was Ari's one and true regret. "Eli shipped me out soon after, and by the time I had returned…Tali had been killed in a bombing. She never knew the truth."

Evelyn sat there forming words inside her head, but none passed her lips. Her brows furrowed as she processed it all. Finally, she opened her mouth. "I'm sorry," she whispered out.

He blinked, looking at her. There was a glint of surprise in his eyes, before he gave her his usual lazy smirk. "Don't be. You're not the one who did it," he stated, as if it were nothing at all. But Evelyn knew better. He was unnerved by how much he had just shared. How stark he had been with emotions. How open he let himself be because he just didn't do that with anyone. And Evelyn could understand that better than anyone else.

"I'm sorry," she repeated again.

His smirk dropped, and his eyes became very serious. He sat up a little straight as if considering pulling away from her and he stared straight into her eyes. "Evelyn," he said her name. It was soft, something smaller than a whisper, but it trembled through Evie like it had been a shout.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered again. She leaned towards him, cupping his face between her hands and their noses touched. She was sorry. She was sorry for the little boy who never got a chance, she was sorry for the father that never truly got to raise his daughter, and she was sorry for the man who sat in front of her who was so desperately trying to salvage a broken future for himself.

His hands reached up and wrapped around her wrists gently. His eyes closed for a long moment, and his jaw trembled. "That is why," his voice was quite, but firm, "I say that Gibbs would be a fool not to take the second chance he has been given. Second chances are rare, and hard to come by. People should cherish them when given. I know…that I would."

She let out a breath, her heart hammering inside her chest and the next second, she sealed her lips over his. His hand caught the nape of her neck, drawing her closer in and deepening the kiss. He felt like he waited a lifetime to feel his mouth on hers. He gave her the opportunity to pull back, that if she regretted it to immediately back away. He would never force this upon her, he knew her insecurity and reservations. She didn't pulled away, and her eyelashes fluttered shut, her mouth softening against his. She relaxed into him with a soft warmth, and he pulled her tightly against him.

When she looked at him, she saw the man he should have been. Her complete acceptance of him, and who he was helping him piece together his life bit by bit. He felt truly safe with her, and that stunned him deeply. He could never trust another person, and here he was giving his last small piece of humanity to Evelyn for safe keeping.

He shifted her and had one hand bunched in her hair while he devoured her mouth. He wanted to feel her skin upon his skin, feel the soft curved of her body mold to the hard planes of his. At some point, she had straddled his powerful thighs and she couldn't fail to notice that he was heavily aroused. The need-whitehot-twisted and weaved through her veins threatening to consume her and all Evelyn could think was, More.

"We have to stop," he murmured. Ari wasn't a saint. No one would ever mistaken him for one, but he knew if another minute went by like this, he would lose all control. Evelyn was vulnerable, and he would not take advantage of her. He knew she would never accuse him of such, but he wouldn't feel right afterwards. Evelyn deserved better than that.

Evelyn pulled back slowly, her eyes still closed and her chest rising and falling with breathlessly gasps. Her mouth was red and swollen from his kisses, and her hair was wild. She opened her eyes, the liquid blue darkened with desire. He almost put her back into his arms, but she drew away, flopping back onto the couch and out of his lap. Her cheeks were warm and flush, and she was looking everywhere, but at Ari. She was in deep now, she was starting to fall and there was no ground in sight below.

"I love kissing you," he whispered, causing her head to snap towards him.

Evelyn sat there panting, trying to catch her breath while trying to figure out why she had kissed him. She had poured herself into that kiss, giving him everything she was. She was silent for a long time, just looking at him.

"I like kissing you to," she said, a note of teasing to her voice, but it was overshadows by the overwhelming shock as if she couldn't quite believe it.

Fornell was waiting for the elevator, going over all the information in the file when a wave of apprehension rolled over him. Looking up he found the source of that feeling moving towards him at a brisk speed. He forced his expression to be ever pleasant as Gibbs came to a stop in front of him. "Gibbs, what a surprise," Fornell stated, abrasively. The FBI agent hid the roll of his eyes when Gibbs followed him into the elevator. "Thought you and your team would be out searching for Evelyn's mysterious shooter."

"Why go searching for a man you've already found," Gibbs stated, almost conversationally.

Fornell snorted. "So you've come to pick a bone with me?" The FBI agent guessed, with a sarcastic smile. He flipped through the file, trying to hide his worry. The man who tried to take down Evelyn in the store was a professional and had been hired to kill. He had messed up, obviously and someone was desperately trying to cover their tracks before it was too late. "Look, I'll let you have a shot at him if that's what you want."

"I do, but that's not my main concern now, Tobias."

There was something in Gibbs's voice that made Fornell freeze, and slowly look up. One look at Gibbs face told him all he needed to know and he let out a groan. "Ah, hell," he said, running a hand down his face. "She told."

"She told," Gibbs parroted, darkly.

The elevator doors slid shut.

END OF CHAPTER!

NEXT CHAPTER! When everything starts to come together, it may just all fall apart. Evelyn and Gibbs have the confrontation you've all be waiting for, and the teams reactions. Meanwhile someone learns that Evie is hiding Ari…

IMPORTANT NOTE! Please read.

The Girl In Memory: Spooks Edition

This is an Alternative Universe, meaning that this is a different road that Evelyn Matthews went down. While the focal point of Kelly(Evie) being reunited with Gibbs will stay the same, other facts will not.

Timeline: This fic will start in 2005. This is obviously after Kate is killed, and Ari is killed meaning Ziva will be a part of the team unlike in this one and Ari stayed a bad guy.

Also in order to keep the MI-5/Spooks storyline the way I want it, I've had to fudge up the timeline on that. Instead of Lucas North becoming a traitor in 2009/2010, it will be in 2003 when that happens. The timeline will be adjusted to fit this.

CROSSOVER: MI-5/Spooks, but it will be centered mostly around the NCIS Universe so we won't be getting too lost. There will be elements from Nancy Drew: The Silent Spy, but no characters or really anything that warrants it as a crossover really. I'm just taking bits of the storyline from that game to build a background for Evelyn, but as a precaution I'll mention it in disclaimer anyhow.

Summary: Evelyn Matthews has come a long way to reunite with her past and her father, but she has a ocean of secrets that threaten to drown her, and more blood on her hands than most men. An AU look at what could have been if no one had saved Evelyn from the dark path that she was headed down.

Pairings: Lucas/North, Gibbs/Jenny, Tony/Ziva, Abby/McGee

Warning: Language, Blood, Violence, Mentions of Drug Use and may contain sexual activity but nothing too graphic

So that's the setup! Let me know what you think! :D

THANKS YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

R&Rs are appreciated