Gibbs had called Jessica after he got Sarah to take a nap. He thought it would be good for both of them to see each other, especially for Sarah. He could sense she really needed to see her. He also sensed that even though she had started to open up, there was so much more that she was hiding. He hoped that with Jessica she might open up a little more, or at least begin to feel more at ease.

Jessica arrived promptly. She was hesitant at first but when Gibbs gave her a light version of what he had learned, she wanted to help. After all, this was her best friend. Seeing her in pain was the last thing she wanted.

Sarah walked down the stairs soon after. She was attempting to pull back her hair with little success. She was having a hard time reaching back due to pain. Jessica ran over and helped her pull it back. She lightly grabbed her wrist and walked with her to the couch. Gibbs left the girls alone and went to work on his boat in the basement.

"Sarah, I wish you would talk to me. It will help, I promise." Sarah closed her eyes and sighed. She trusted Jessica; that was not the issue. The issue was she didn't feel quite ready. But she was right. She needed to try.

"I don't feel ready to say everything."

"You don't have to. Just start with what you are comfortable with."

Sarah took a deep breath and started to tell her what she told Gibbs. She held back some things, knowing sooner or later she would have to tell them. She just couldn't do it yet. She was not ready to say it out loud.

Jessica wasn't sure what to say. She started to imagine intense scenes from what she heard, even though she knew she was missing some details. The horrors she faced were something Jessica could not imagine enduring. It was amazing she had survived, she thought.

The images began to creep back into Sarah's mind. She had to stop talking to Jessica about it. It was scaring her again. Jessica noticed the look in her eyes and did not press her any further. Pressing her would probably make it worse, she thought. And she thought it would be better with time. She gave Sarah her reassurance, knowing although it didn't mean much, it was what she could offer.

Sarah sat on the couch and played with her knife. It was the only thing that Gibbs let her have back at the moment, until she passed her recertification firearms, but it gave her some comfort to have something to defend herself with. She needed a distraction and wanted to get back to work, but Vance wanted to make sure she was mentally ready. She was able to convince them to let her at least sit in the bullpen in an attempt to regain some normalcy.

She had started trying to get back into the gym, so she was ready the next time Bruno came after her. He had gotten to her before, and she was determined not to let him again. She was sore and was pushing through the pain from regaining her strength. Her doctors cautioned her but had talked with her on how to reintroduce her activities in a safe way to minimize injury complication. She was trying to follow their advice, if only so she would not have to go back to them as often, but her anger sometimes drove her to go too far. Gibbs had seen her in the gym and cautioned her as well. He worried that she was pushing herself too hard. But he also noticed how her drive was hopefully helping her recover.

He noticed her almost in a trance, studying the knife in her hands as he approached. He tried not to startle her so she would not cut herself as he approached. He waited until she put down the knife to make his presence known. She still jumped, but since her knife was down, she did not get cut.

"How are you feeling today?" She shrugged.

"Been better."

"Something is on your mind though. You have seemed bothered the past few days."

She did not want to tell him, but she was bothered. All her sessions in the gym, her downtime, she thought about what happened to her. She could not get it out of her head no matter how hard she tried. It was like she was just not strong enough to break free, to overpower him like he had overpowered her. And she thought about what happened before he grabbed her. She wanted to grab lunch, and Gibbs had told her he was not comfortable with it, but she did not listen. She should have been strong enough, and she should have been smarter about that day. She had no one to blame but herself, so she wanted to make sure it did not happen again.

"Sarah. What is going on?"

She sighed. "All of this, it is my fault." She looked down, not wanting to see his face.

Gibbs shook his head and wrapped an arm around her. "Sarah this is not your fault."

"But it is! It is my fault. I should have listened to you. If we did not go out for lunch that day, none of this would have happened. None of it! If I had been strong enough, I would have broken free, and we would have arrested him instead of him taking me. This could have all been over!" She propped her elbows on her knees and hid her face in her hands. She felt herself starting to break down again, and she did not want to see his reaction. She had tried for so long to keep it together, so people would stop looking at her like a victim. Gibbs was the only person to really see her vulnerable, where she felt she could completely relax her guard for a moment.

"Sare, this is not your fault. Knowing Bruno, he would have found a way to get to you even if you did not go out that day." He noticed a few tears leaking through her fingers. "Sare." He pulled her closer to him and rubbed her arm.

"Why can't I just keep it together? Why?"

"What you went through is very traumatic. It is going to take you some time to be completely passed it, if at all."

Sarah sighed, but kept her face hidden in her hands. "Can't you sign off on my paperwork? Please?"

"You don't like your therapist, do you?" She shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"Not at all! I get farther with you than I do with him."

"Then I want you to see Rachel."

"Gibbs…"

"I am not signing your paperwork. But you already know her, and she is happy to help you." Sarah looked over to Gibbs.

"You already told her."

"I did." He handed her a business card. "She is expecting your call." She looked down at the card, then looked back at Gibbs out of the corner of her eyes.

"I hate you sometimes." He chuckled.