It was very obvious that something had changed between Ziva and Tony when Adam saw them coming downstairs to meet him. They were both, different, but couldn't put his finger on how. They hadn't been reachable all morning but now they sauntered down the stairs happily talking. Adam waved at them but they didn't see him until they were right upon him.
"Oh! Adam..." Ziva declared. He was close enough to trip her and she was surprised.
"Good morning, I trust you slept well."
Tony and Ziva tried not to exchange a look, as they both said that they had slept well.
They all decided that they should eat before setting back out on the road, so they all walked to the dining room of the hotel and ordered food.
"We will need to make it to the headquarters today." Adam stated, "the memorial is planned for tomorrow and you are being asked to speak Ziva."
"Doesn't that put her more in danger, being right in front of everyone?" Asked Tony.
Ziva ignored the questions in front of her at the moment, and focused on what hit her first. "If we have to make headquarters today, we are going to have to race, Adam! We probably shouldn't have stopped for the night..." Not that she regretted it at all, a trace of a smile on her face.
"No we really shouldn't have. But you looked so exhausted, Ziva, I didn't feel like a gentleman unless I got you a bed to sleep in." Adam told her.
"Well thank you. I really did sleep well, and I feel better. But we need to get a move on" she said while chugging her juice.
They all ate quickly and got in the car to be on their way. Once they were in the car, Tony wanted to know the details about keeping Ziva safe. "So Adam, what are we going to do to keep our Ziva safe at the memorial and the rest of our time in Israel?"
Adam sighed, he wished her had real answers for him, "I don't know what Mossad has planned to keep her safe, but I have thoughts on the matter."
"And they would be..." Tony was getting impatient. They were heading right into danger, and he had the least amount of information of the three of them, and he wanted to keep her safe the most.
Adam started out in a different direction but was getting to their point, "Ziva, how much a part of the memorial do you want to be?"
"I need this to be closure on our relationship. I don't expect it to fix all of our family issues, but I need some since of closure."
"So giving the eulogy would be a positive part to play?" Adam asked.
"Yes, I think that would be a great part to play!" Ziva said excitedly.
"Wait..."Tony said quickly, "with politics the way that they are, wouldn't her doing the eulogy make it really look like she's fighting to be his successor?"
Ziva had to give him credit, that was a good thought. He was good at the politics thing. But she was sad that the politics were getting in the way of her being able to honor her father again. She had to breathe in order to keep her cool. It didn't help, "I hate that all of this is ruining the day we have to honor my father. He deserves more, he worked hard for this country, and sacrificed a LOT for it." She couldn't go on. Burning tears we blinding her eyes and she fell on Tonys waiting shoulder for comfort.
"I know Ziva. But that's the way they are. There isn't any use leaping into danger yourself for no reason. There are plenty of people that think wiping out the rest of the David family is a good next step. I will not put you in that kind of danger...I can't let it happen." Adam was getting emotional in his yelling.
Wow tensions are high, Tony thought. He also felt like he could trust Adam more, he was on Ziva's side. "So what are we going to do?" Tony asked again.
"I don't know" Adam said, "I really don't know... There are too many moving pieces in this."
Tony looked at Ziva, "what does your guy tell you?" He asked softly.
"Tony, I am not the one with the magic gut."
"I know but, it's a family tie. Your gut has to be saying something."
"I have to go the memorial Tony. I have to be there and I have to be part of it. My absence would also look suspicious. I am going, I am giving the eulogy, and you will have to figure out how to protect me if it's important to you both." Ziva said.
As they pulled near headquarters, Ziva got nervous. She hated and mistrusted everyone here. Would she ever be rid of them? She got out of the car with the guys, and met Orli in the foyer.
She took Ziva by the shoulders and said "Ziva, we are glad you are here, and safe. You are needed in a meeting that's going on right now." And she pulled Ziva with her without turning to Tony and Adam.
"Not happening," Tony yelled after them, "Ziva is not leaving my side. If she is needed in a meeting, then I am too."
"I will use your own words Tony. Not happening. Ziva is wanted to be involved in the memorial, and involved she will be. If you think you can protect her better then all of Mossad, you are greatly mistaken and think very highly of yourself. The only reason you were able to bring Rivkan down, is he was drunk. We all still blame you for it by the way. So you should think twice about who you think is in danger here in Israel Tony."
Ziva looked at Tony and tried to reassure him with her eyes. It wasn't working. He was having a staring contest with Orli.
"Tony." Ziva said instead, "I will be fine."
Tony wasn't buying it, "Orli, exactly what is your plan to keep Ziva safe during this event?"
"You, Adam and I will be discussing that after I drop Ziva off into this meeting she needs to be at." She turned around and walked with Ziva down the hall.
Tony hated seeing her go. He didn't trust her or any of them. He didn't want Ziva here, she wasn't safe in any way. They had a way of convincing her to do things that were not in her best interest. They also had a way of having anterior motives that weren't in her best interest. He wanted her to have the closure she needed, but he would feel better once they were on a plane home. He turned to Adam, "we need a plan" and he walked down the hall in the opposite direction then Orli went. Adam followed him.
Once Orli showed back up the two had a working plan for the memorial. Adam had explained all the sides of the issues and Tony had a better understanding of what they were looking at. He honestly felt better. Orli also had some thoughts, and the man power she was talking of sounded really good to him. He tried not to take down all of his defenses, but he was feeling very good about all of this now.
"So we will put you three up in a hotel tonight with a safety team on the outside. Memorial is at 10 tomorrow morning and you will all need to be here early." Orli was saying when Ziva walked back down the hall.
The location of the memorial looked beautiful when they all arrived the next morning. Tony was in full protection detail mode from the moment they got there. Ziva tried to ignore it and not let it bother her because she wasn't sure why it did. Tony thought she looked gorgeous in her dress. He was glad that she left her hair down in wild curls. He planned to tell her all of that later in the day.
Tony was tired, and ready for all of this to be over. He just wanted Ziva next time him on a plane back to DC. He had thought that this would be a good trip for Ziva and him. And while it had been, it had also been very hard on Ziva. He had imagined sightseeing and lots of hugging, but they had had a lot of stress and tears. He thought back to the moment he had found her in that chapel. She looked so alone, and he was so glad that she had let him into her sorrow. He was still glad- and wanted to be there for her in every way possible. They had come a long way emotionally since that moment in the chapel. He smiled at all that had transpired.
The service started on time. There were thousands of people here, and politics was the rule of the day. Everyone was a little tense, and Tony didn't like how that tension grew as the service moved on. Ziva was the emotionless ninja again. She could turn it on and off so fast. Tony checked the pamphlet again, Ziva was next up if the man talking now would ever be done. He watched her from a hundred feet away. She was anxious, fiddling with the edge of her dress and looking around cautiously. He wanted to know why she was nervous. She saw him watching her and gave him a forced smile. He smiled back and tried to reassure her with his eyes.
Tony looked around again to check on the crowd and made a gesture to Adam from across the crowd. All looked good so far. He hoped it would stay that way. Then Ziva was standing and walking toward the podium. Her speech had been memorized and she spoke without tears, emotion or a hint of caring. It was very matter of fact and empty sounding.
A movement to her right caught Tony's eye and he responded by moving towards it. He tried to get Adam's attention but couldn't. His heart practically leaped out of his chest when a gun was produced and anxious voices were heard near the man. Tony was at a run now and scared out of his mind. The man was on the move and making Tony very nervous. Just then Tony heard shots behind him and spun around mid step. The crowd turned to chaos as they all reacted. He could tell someone on stage was hurt, but not who. Tony didn't know where to turn, more shots were fired and more chaos. He tried to make his way to the stage, but was getting pummeled by the terrified crowd. He couldn't see Adam, but hoped he was having more luck then he was. So many thoughts were running through Tony's head he couldn't think straight he was running only on instinct.