Her heart was pounding in her chest as the plane touched down in Paris. This was it. The moment she had been waiting for.
She found it hard to believe that it was all finally coming to an end. That all the pain, heartache, suffering, and all the sacrifices she had made were finally worth it. Faking her own death. Going into hiding…abandoningher child.
A wave of guilt washed over her. The last time she had seen them both, when Tony tracked her down in Egypt, Tali was only two and a half.
Cairo, Egypt.
"You should not have come," she said, her voice echoing the words she said to him when he found her in Somalia.
He looked at her, as if he was seeing her for the very first time. Then again, in some ways, he was. It had been three and a half years since he had left her on the tarmac in Tel Aviv, and though he looked at photos of her every night – at photos of them – it could not replace the way her eyebrows furrowed when she was confused, the way her lips would curve up into a small smile, the way her eyes would sparkle whenever she looked at him, mirroring his own love and adoration for her. They were both older now. When he looked in the mirror, his brown hair was slowly being peppered with grey strands; his face having one or two more wrinkles than he did in his thirties. And, she too had changed, evolved. She had waged more wars. Anxiety had become her enemy. And there were new scars – both physically and emotionally, that ran deep. Part of her also worried that he would no longer love her, for she was not the same woman he left.
"Tough," he replied, his voice low and husky, not wanting to wake his daughter.
Tony cradled a sleeping Tali in his arms as he leant against the doorway of the house. It was different than he had imagined it to be when he had tracked her down. He pictured a battered, beaten-up house falling apart; worn and weathered. And yet, he was standing in a place that reminded him of her childhood farmhouse back in Israel, with the olive grove in the back yard… the place that when they last had been together was filled with echoes of pleasure and passion as they (unknowingly) created the most beautiful thing in the world.
The sun burned through every window, turning the house into a giant sauna. Sweat glistened on Ziva's skin as she stepped into the light.
For most people who had been apart for as long as they had, it would be easy to forget how to understand one another. And yet, with them, there was a still a familiarity – an unspoken shorthand – both of them instinctively knowing what the other was thinking without ever having to verbalise it.
Ziva nodded her head towards the back room, as Tony carried a still out-for-the-count Tali to the bedroom, gently setting her down on the bed. He pressed a soft kiss to her hair before closing the door behind him. He reappeared moments later.
Minutes, or perhaps hours, passed between them, an awkward and all-encompassing silence filling the air. Neither of them wanted to be the one to approach the conversation, for they knew it wasn't going to be pleasant. Ziva knew he was angry. But she also knew that his anger stemmed from immeasurable love.
"Tony," she spoke, into the silence, her body turned away from him. She couldn't bear to look at him for she knew that his face would be riddled with hurt and disappointment, inflicted by her own choices. "Why are you here?" She asked.
Both of their memories flickered, like a snapshot of a movie.
"Tony, why are you here?" she had asked him, bound to a chair, her body covered from head to toe in in dirt; her mouth dry, her lips cracked, and her hair sticking to every inch of her from the desert heat.
"Couldn't live without you, I guess," he had answered.
Though she knew in her whole body that that was the reason he found her – it was always the reason – she anticipated that his response would be less than affectionate this time.
"You know why!" he yelled, perhaps a little louder than he had intended. She turned around to face him.
He had spent hours contemplating what their encounter would look like when they came face-to-face again. How he would scoop her up into his arms and tell her how much he had missed her; declaring his love and how he hasn't stopped loving her all these years. How he would gently tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, before pulling her in closer and kissing her like their lives depended on it – which knowing them, could always have been a possibility. He thought about whether the sizzling air of sexual tension that had once filled every room they were in together would still be there waiting for them; and they would make long overdue love to one another until the sounds of each other's moans and their heartbeat thumping in their ears would drown out the outside world.
He had imagined a hundred and fifty thousand ways their meeting would go. But never had he bet on his unspent anger bubbling away inside him like a volcano, before erupting right in front of her – his knuckles turning white as his fists clenched at his sides. He would never in a million years lay a hand on her, but every fibre of his being wanted to hit…something.
"After everything we've been through together – how could you?!"
"I had no other choice!" she replied.
"Bullshit! There's always a choice, Ziva!"
Their voices were loud and raised now, their soft tones blown into the wind; the hurt laced into every word.
"You would have been here, exactly like you are now and I could not lose you!"
"What aboutme, Ziva? I lostyou! Even if you knew I would have come running – which you're right on the money about by the way – you should have given me theoption. You made a choice, but it wasnotyour choice to make." He yelled, throwing his arms up in the air. Guilt washed over her. He was right. It was not her choice to make, but she had made it anyway. And now, she had to live with the consequences. "Do you have any idea of the pain I went through thinking you were dead –for real this time?"
"I'm sorry-"
"No, you don't get to be sorry, Ziva. You don't get to be sorry, because you didn't have to do any of this," he said, his words echoing her own from the farmhouse. "The pain I felt – still feel – was unbearable."
"What aboutmypain?!" she yelled, her hands resting on her heart. "The pain of leaving my daughter, never knowing if I would ever see her, or get to hold her again. The pain of being haunted by the memory of her and never being able to be close enough; knowing that if I ever made it back to her she would be just a little bit bigger, a little bit more grown up than the last time."
"You're not the only one who has missed out on moments of her life, Ziva! Howdareyou keep her from me for so long!" His tone was more vicious than she had ever heard it, as he pointed his arm towards the back bedroom, where Tali was (still surprisingly) asleep. 'Why didn't you tell me?! Did you think I wouldn't be capable of being a father, is that it?!'
"Absolutely not!' she yelled. 'The one thing I have never doubted is the fact that you would be an amazing father to Tali!'
"Alright, so what was it then?AmI even Tali's father? After all, the last time you went back to Israel before we said goodbye you slept with Adam – for all I know, she could be his!" He scoffed, "Hell, who knows, you'd probably prefer that!' He blinked, inhaling sharply he immediately regretted it; hurt plastering itself all over her face. He looked at her, as tears streamed down her cheeks. He had crossed a line, he knew that. But that's the thing about matters of the heart – they're very rarely rational. He knew deep down that Tali was his, and that Ziva would never lie to him about that. He also knew how much she loved him. But still, anger and doubt had amalgamated together, slipping out of his mouth before he had even had time to think.
"Howdareyou!" She looked at him with her pain-filled, angry eyes, her index finger pointed angrily at him. He hadn't seen or heard that tone of voice in years – not since she had asked him what he had jeopardised his entire career for, and he had repliedher; not since he had shot Michael Rivkin in her apartment... albeit,slightlyout of jealousy because he was head-over-heels in love with her, butmostlyout of self defence."How dare you throw that in my face! You know that it did not mean anything – it was just meaningless sex; a way to make myself feel better! I know that I hurt you when it happened, and for that I am sorry. But, if youneedto know, Adam and I used protection – so yes, Tony – youareTali's father! " She hissed, "And for your information,no– I wouldnothave preferred if Tali was Adam's, because Adam does not have my heart! You do! How dare you accuse me of that!" She yelled, hiccoughing through her sobs. "I'm sorry for not telling you of her, Tony, but I-I did not think you would be pleased; that it would disrupt your life!"
"Not pleased?!" he scoffed, "Then you don't know me at all! You thought it would disrupt my life in DC? Well, news flash – it did anyway – when we've spent the past nine months bouncing around from place to place looking for you!"
"I did not ask for you to find me, Tony!"
"Yeah, well, Ziva, that's tough – because as long as I love you, I'll never stop!"
Silence once again encompassed the two of them as they paused, panting and breathless from the yelling. Their eyes locked one another, their gazes intense. The air cracked and sizzled with tension.
Before either of them had time to yell another word, his lips were crashing into hers, his hands gliding down her back and settling on her waist, pulling her closer to him. Her hands found his hair, as he deepened the kiss with a sense of urgency; their minds recollecting the last time they had kissed like this – him in a tuxedo and her in an emerald dress, as he ran his hands all over her, while she wrapped her arms around his neck. They'd been undercover then as 'Jean Paul' and 'Sophie', but thirteen years later they still remembered the way the shape of their naked bodies fit so perfectly together beneath the sheets as they moved in a steady rhythm.
Their kisses now were wet, on account of the tears trickling down both of their faces. One, or perhaps both of them, let out an unintentional moan as their bodies slammed up against the wall, the photo frames rattling. Their hearts pounded in their chests, their lips not leaving each other's even for a moment; his hands snaking upwards to find her own, clasping them above their heads and their fingers interlacing. Ziva let out a gasp against his mouth as Tony's hands released their grip from above their heads, as his hands travelled beneath her t-shirt, his fingertips stroking the soft skin around her hip. Without breaking contact, he moaned as her fingers tugged at his hair, gliding over the front of his chest, before finding the waistband of his jeans, attempting to unbuckle his belt.
And if it hadn't been for the cry of the little girl from the bedroom several seconds later pulling them out of their haze, they would have devoured each other then and there, even in the sweltering heat.
They broke apart, panting and breathless, their noses pressed against one another. Neither of them wanted to be the one to cease whatever had just transpired between them, but they were no longer justthemnow. They were second in the equation, and the little girl –theirlittle girl – was first. Tony's head bent down ever so slightly, capturing Ziva's lips in gentle kiss. His hands came to rest gently on her shoulders before caressing her arms.
"I should, uh-" he nodded towards the door. Ziva nodded. He fastened his belt, Ziva touching her fingers to her lips, resisting the urge to smile. Tony pressed a kiss into her hair, before attending to Tali.
"She misses you," Tony said quietly. They were in a red tiled courtyard at the back of the house, on two wooden chairs. The sun was even more sweltering in midday, but they had manoeuvred the chairs underneath a tree, providing a small, but needed patch of shade. Tali was running around with her imaginary friends, breathing in the Egyptian air, laughing to herself. "Imiss you."
"I miss you you." Ziva replied sadly.
"What's going on, Ziva?"
"I cannot-"
"Yes, you can. Why are you running, or should I ask, from who?"
"Tony, it is not safe, for either of you."
"I can protect her. Both of us."
"How?" Ziva asked. "You no longer work for NCIS."
"But my family does. All it would take is one phone call and Gibbs and McNerd would have every law enforcement agency in the world on our doorstep with protection details."
"Tony, this is not a joke."
"I'm not joking," he said seriously. "Do you really think I would travel halfway around the world with our daughter without a back-up plan? Come on, Ziva. You know me better than that."
"Do I?" She looked up at him, sadly.
"You wrote strict instructions for Orli to bring Tali to DC – to me, because you trusted me to love her and keep her safe. Ziva," he said, clasping her hands gently in his own, pressing a kiss to her fingertips. "I know trusting people is hard for you, Ziva," he whispered gently. "But I am asking you to trust me now."
She sighed.
"I do not know who they are or what they want," she began, "but they're determined to find me. A few days before the farmhouse exploded, I was at the market with Tali. She asked me to buy her a necklace," Ziva said, twiddling the chain around her neck between her thumbs. "We were about to head back, and I noticed I was being followed. I didn't think much of it at the time, thinking maybe I was a little paranoid."
"Rule 40: If you think someone's out to get you, they probably are."
Ziva nodded.
"And then the farmhouse exploded. I knew then that they were well and truly after me, and that it was no longer safe for either of us. Adam helped me prepare a continuity plan to fake my death and bring Tali to you."
"Contingency," he said, correcting her Ziva-ism, as he affectionately referred to them.
"Yes," she nodded. "I held Tali in my arms and sang her a lullaby. I took in the sight of her, her smell. I memorised everything about her in case I'd never get to see her again. I whispered to her. 'Ima loves you more than anything in the world. I have to go away for a little while, but you are going to be with Abba and he is the most amazing man I have ever known.' She fell asleep shortly after, and I pressed a kiss to her head," Ziva recounted as tears trickled down her cheeks. "I scooped her up in my arms, and we slipped out the back of the farmhouse to the market, where I handed her to Adam. He then told me to disappear into the shadows undercover and keep innocuous."
"Inconspicuous."
"Right." She paused looking up at him. "I apologise for the pain I have caused everybody, especially you. But faking my death was – is – the only way."
Tony pressed another kiss to her fingertips. She had spent a lot of time apologising, and he would be lying if he said he wasn't still angry with her – but it was starting to make sense to him, like pieces of a puzzle falling into place. But how much of the jigsaw did they have left? And when it was said and done, were he and Tali the final piece?
"So," he said softly, "if they think you're dead, why are you still running?"
"I never said it was a perfect plan. It may have fooled them for now, but it is only a matter of time before they catch on. When they realise that this was all a russ-,"
"Ruse."
Ziva nodded. "When they realise it's all fake, they'll come looking for me again."
"So, what now?"
"I stay undercover. I find them, before they find me."
"Ziva-"
"I know what I am doing, Tony."
"I don't doubt that for a second."
There was a steely silence between them.
"At some point," she said minutes later, "we are going to have to address the heffalump in the room."
"Elephant."
"What?"
"It'selephantin the room, Ziva," Tony said, a small smirk playing on his face.
"That too," she replied, the corners of her mouth turning up into a small smile. Their eyes locked on one another's sharing the look with which they had become well acquainted. Suddenly it was as if they were both transported back into the middle of the bullpen, stealing longing glances from across the room, their hearts fluttering at the mere sight of one another.
"What happens when this is all over?" Tony asked, a hint of sadness in his voice.
"That depends," she said, playing with her fingers.
"On?"
"On you."
She looked at their hands, as Tony took her fingers in his. He brought them up to his mouth, placing a gentle kiss on her fingertips in the same way he had done in Israel. He opened her palm, threading her fingers through his own. There was something deeply intimate about this, and the way he never took his eyes off her.
"Not a single second has gone by when I have not thought about you – about Tali, and what it would be like to see the both of you again when all this is over. But then I would worry, because I would think I would no longer be welcome, that too much time has passed. I would ask myself: what happens if he has moved on and is with somebody else now? What happens if he does not love you anymore? What happens if the choices you have made are completely unforgivablethat he won't take you back? What then?" She felt him gently squeeze her hand. "I learnt how to be a mother, but I-" A tear slipped down her cheek. "Wehave never been –us. I do not know if I know how to be a partner. I do not know if I can be everything you want."
"I'm still so angry and hurt," he said, "but I understand why you did what you had to do." He leant over the chair, pressing a kiss to her hair. "I haven't entirely forgiven you yet... but I don't want you to blame yourself more than I know you already do. You were protecting us - our family."
He turned her head back to look at him.
"Ziva," he said, looking into her eyes. "After Israel, I spent a long time in a pit of depression. I bought a motorcycle." Ziva raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, I didn't keep it. Turns out, I'm too old for that now. Anyway. I barely spoke to anybody. I didn't want to see anyone, or do anything. I went home and I drank – probably more than I should. I kept your Star of David necklace in my drawer at work and would look at it whenever I missed you – which was every day. But after a while, about a year or so, it finally hit me: she's really not coming home, I thought. She doesn't want you, and you can't wait around forever for something that might never happen. And so, I tried to get back out there." Ziva inhaled sharply. "McAbby convinced me to get back out into the dating world, and I did date someone for just under year, this woman named Zoe – a firearms expert. We both wanted it to work out. I even gave her a key to my apartment."
Ziva's gaze shifted to her lap, the ache seeping into her chest. She knew that this was a possibility, but it didn't hurt any less hearing it from his lips. Tony used his free hand to tilt his head upwards to him.
"But you know why it didn't, why we ended up breaking up?" Tony asked. Ziva shook her head. "Because I didn't love her. I couldn't love her. Every time we kissed, all I could think was: she isn't Ziva." He paused. "The day I left you on the tarmac in Israel, you took my heart with you. You're the love of my life… and I meant what I said when I left you there. All I want is you."
Ziva sniffled. "We still have not addressed the elephant."
"When this is all over, Ziva," he said, his voice low, looking into her eyes. Tears were brimming in both of theirs. "You're coming home. You're coming home and we're going to be together, a real family. You. Me. Tali. As for the rest of it – the whole being partners… lovers… we'll figure it out. When the time comes, we'll figure it out together."
"And, there are more difficult and uncomfortable conversations we need to have," she replied.
He let out a hum of acknowledgment. "When the time comes," he cupped her face in his hands, gently wiping away the tears that had fallen down her cheeks with his thumbs.
"You know, you and Tali have to leave," she said sadly, pressing her cheek into his hands, wanting to remember his touch on her skin.
"I know," he replied. "But I don't want to lose you again… I can't-" he choked out, his voice reminiscent of his tone in the squad room when his father had asked him to come home after Ziva's "death". "I'm fighting for you, Ziva," he whispered.
Ziva nodded, a lump settling in her throat. "I know." She said, gently cupping his face with her own hands, rubbing her thumbs over his cheeks. "I will contact you with what you need to know, as and when you need to know it. Nothing more. It is safer for all of us, that way." She brought their faces close together, their lips gently brushing over one another; their noses rubbing affectionately.
"Rule 11," he whispered. His breath was warm on her lips, sending a shiver down her spine.
"When the job is done, walk away," she whispered back, capturing his lips in a gentle kiss. He resisted the urge to deepen it. Now was not the time. However, after bearing their souls to one another once more under the Egyptian sun, they would end up engaging in the most passionate, intimate night they had ever shared; Tony tracing gentle circles with his fingertips on her caramel skin as she lain upon his chest, both of them exhausted but both of soaking up every ounce of each other, uncertain of how long it would be until they could be like that again.
"Daddy!" Tali burst out into tears; Tony and Ziva breaking apart as Tali ran over to him, her knee scraped. He scooped her up into his arms, pressing a kiss to her head. "It's hurts!" she wailed, tucking her face in his neck.
"I know, Principessa," he whispered. He hadn't even noticed that Ziva disappeared until she stood above him with a clean cloth, a bowl of water, some band aids, and some scissors in her hands. They smiled at each other. "Abba will make it all better," he said to Tali. He stood up, setting her on the chair and crouching down. He wiped her knee gently with the cloth, as Ziva caressed her hair, placing a kiss to her head. When it was clean, Tony pulled a band aid from its wrapper. Tali burst into tears.
"I don't want it!" she cried, shaking her head violently before sobbing into his shirt.
"Hmmm…" he muttered, gently pushing her away to look at him. Her big brown eyes stared at him, inquisitively. "Well, how about if Daddy makes a very special band aid for Princess Tali?"
"Really?" she spoke, through her sniffles.
"Really."
Moments later, he was cutting the band aid into the shape of a heart. Ziva stared at him, a warmth bubbling in her stomach, her heart almost bursting from the overwhelming love that rippled through , I love him so much, she thought. Tony placed the heart-shaped band aid onto Tali's knee, pressing a little kiss to it afterwards. "Better?"
Tali nodded, smiling up at him, before jumping off the chair and running back to play.
"She has you wrapped around her little finger," Ziva spoke, looking up at Tony who was now standing beside her.
"Yeah," he chuckled, watching Tali, "she takes after her mother."
"Ima loves you so much, Tali," Ziva spoke through her tears as she cradled her daughter in her arms on the couch. An ache settled deep in her chest, knowing that in the morning the two loves of her life would be on a plane to Paris. "I love you more than anything."
"What about Abba?" Tali asked, looking up at her mother.
Ziva's gaze travelled to the doorway, where Tony was leant against the frame, gazing at the two of them. Their eyes locked for a moment before Ziva turned to Tali and responded.
"Abba has Ima's heart. And you know what?" Tali looked up at her with big brown eyes, questioningly. "Ima and Abba's love, madeyou." From the corner of her eye, she could see Tony inhale sharply, smiling to himself. His mind flickered back to the time he and Ziva babysat Vance's kids. He had always known Ziva would be an incredible mother, but seeing it in reality – to his –their– daughter... he thought his heart was going to burst with pride. "So, one heart plus one heart… makes two!" Ziva bopped Tali on the tip of nose with her finger, before following it through with a kiss.
"Tali has two hearts?" Tali replied both as a question and a statement. "Ima's," she said slowly, putting one hand over her heart, "and Abba's." She placed her other hand on top.
"Ima's and Abba's," Ziva repeated, gently squeezing Tali's tiny fingers, smiling at her.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for flying with Air France. The time is four-fifteen, and welcome to Paris."
Ziva took a breath as the whirring of the plane engines died down to a standstill. She fiddled with her phone, pulling up the video of Tali. She was so big and beautiful. Nerves settled in the pit of her stomach. Three years was a long time to have been apart from both of them. Though she knew that Tony would not let Tali forget her, she couldn't help but be terrified that Tali wouldn't remember – the market, the necklace, Ziva holding onto her so tightly in Cairo.
She thought back to her and Tony's conversation. She had no doubt that he loved her. And there was no doubt that she loved him. But they had never been – this. They had never been together, and they had never been parents, and they had never been parentstogether. Would she even fit in with the life that Tony and Tali had made? Would she still remember how to be a mother? Would she know how to be a partner? After all, commitment had never been either of their strong-suits.
She pulled one of the anxiety pills from her pocket, sipping it down with her bottle of water, before taking her bag from underneath the seat. She was travelling light – not that she had many possessions anymore, anyway.
She departed the plane, toying with the chain around her neck as she journeyed through border control and down the long walkway, to the arrivals gate. Her brown hair glistened as the setting sun streamed through the windows, illuminating the airport in an amber glow.
She stood in the foyer, watching the smiles and laughter of others loved ones greeting them, as she searched for her own two familiar faces in the crowd. Her face was crestfallen as her heart sank; a million questions running through her head at a mile-a-minute: two of them latching on to her brain like a they forgotten about me?She if they've realised I am too damaged and have changed their mind?
She looked at her feet, a teardrop plopping onto her shoes.
"Ima!" Ziva heard through the crowd. "Daddy! I see Ima!" For a moment, she thought it was all in her head, until Tony and Tali appeared through the amber glow, like angels surrounded by a warm halo.
"Tali?" Ziva whispered into the air.
"Ima!" Tali cried, bounding through the foyer as fast as her legs could take her, Tony following behind. He was clearly a couple of years older than the last time she had seen him; his hair longer, more dishevelled, and now peppered with grey. Her heart skipped a beat as she took in the sight of him and his beaming smile, still as handsome as ever.
Her thoughts were cut off by the child running full-force at her with her arms open, slamming into her chest and embracing her in the tightest bear hug she had ever felt. The wind was temporarily knocked out of her lungs before she reminded herself to breathe again. "Oh my Tali," Ziva whispered as she scooped her up through her tears. She was so much bigger than the last time Ziva had seen her, that it took her a moment for Ziva to adjust to holding her bigger frame. "Ima has missed you so much." She pressed a kiss to her hair as Tali's arms tightened around her neck. She shifted Tali to one hip, as Tony appeared in front of her.
"Hi," Ziva said softly. She smiled shyly.
"Hi yourself," he replied. Their eyes met; his stare intense. Her stomach flip-flopped, the same way it had when she saw him in Somalia. "I'm sorry we're late," he spoke, not taking his eyes off her. "Princess Tali and I had to make a pit-stop." Her breath hitched as he gently brought his hand up to her face, brushing the hair back from her eyes, and caressing her cheek with his thumb. Even after all these years, she was still amazed and overwhelmed at how gentle he was with her.
Tony turned to Tali. "You want to give this to Ima?" he asked brightly with a beaming smile, handing her a small gift bag. Tali nodded, taking the bag from him. She beamed up at Ziva, as she handed it over.
She tried with varying degrees of success to open it with one hand –trying and failing. Tony smiled, taking Tali from Ziva's arm and holding her in his own.
Ziva gasped as she pulled open the gift bag, removing a gold necklace with a small delicate heart dangling from it.
"Daddy got it for you, Ima!" Tali said, pointing to her necklace. "It's the same as the one Abba got me!"
Tears pooled in Ziva's eyes, as she looked at Tali, noticing for the first time the same gold chain with a heart, sitting delicately above the Star of David necklace that was once hers.
"One heart," Tali said touching her necklace. "Plus one heart," she said again, touching the necklace now dangling over Ziva's chest. "Makes two!" she said, smiling. Ziva inhaled remembers."My heart, plus daddy's heart, makes yours!"
Ziva smiled as tears pooled down her cheeks. Tony pressed a gentle kiss to her hair as she cuddled into his side.
"Come on, Sweetcheeks," he put Tali down on the floor, taking the bag off Ziva's shoulder and hooked it over his own. Tali grabbed on to Ziva's hand, holding onto it tightly, as if she was afraid that Ziva would disappear when she let go. "Senior is waiting in the car. He didn't want to miss a reunion with his best girl."
"What about me, Abba?" Tali asked, feigning shock and offence.
"Ah, Pops loves you more than anything – even more than me, which I'm going to pretend I'm not offended by," he chuckled, "But,mon peitis pois, your mom may just beat us both to the punch! After all…"
"Ima and Abba's love made me!" Tali smiled, nodding proudly, looking up at both of her parents.
Tony and Ziva shared a look, smiling, before he slipped his hand into hers, stroking gentle circles over her knuckles. He raised one eyebrow. She nodded.
The trio walked together through the entrance of the airport, hands clasped to one another. They had been through so much loss, and so much darkness, but as their faces stepped into the setting sun, it offered a promise. A promise of the three of them being tethered together forever. A promise of family.
They say home is where your heart is.
And she had finally returned to hers.