Disclaimer: The concept and the people in the story are fictional and the
property of several production companies. I only borrow them and return them
unharmed and unmarked. No money is made of the story and no infringement is
meant.
*Chapter
11 – Guardian Angel*
Nick heard Danny’s scream, and without thinking twice broke into a run.
The tone of Danny’s voice had made his blood run cold, but as he dashed around
the corner and saw a dark haired man stand over Danny with a baseball bat raised,
Nick’s fear turned into anger.
“Lower the bat and turn around with your hands raised slowly.” He was
amazed how he managed to keep his voice calm when he was almost shaking with
rage inside. Nick watched as the dark haired man turned around and slowly
looked at him before he grinned.
“What are you going to do, are you going to shoot me?”
Nick smiled coldly while he walked closer. He fixed the other man with
his eyes and saw the moment when the mocking disappeared from the dark eyes and
real fear took residence in them.
“Lower your bat and step back from Danny, or yes, I will shoot you.”
Speaking these words, he lowered his weapon and trained it spot on at the
middle of the thug's body. Looking up, he met the now frightened eyes and saw
how the other man shivered for a second before he lowered the baseball bat and
tossed it aside. Nick wanted to say something, when Danny slowly got up and
looked at the thug.
“Get the hell out of here, Sonny, get the hell out of my life.” Danny’s
voice was pained, but Nick heard the venom in the words and it made him shiver.
Still, he didn’t show any emotions and silently watched as the seven men got
into two cars and drove off.
As soon as they were gone, Nick once again almost ran over to Danny,
who was swaying, and caught his friend before he collapsed. “Danny, you need to
go to a doctor.”
But Danny shook his head in vehemence. “No doctor, no police and most
of all, no Mac!”
For a second, Nick thought he had heard wrong, but as Danny remained
silent, he looked up and found Danny’s eyes trained on him. There was such a
fear and despair in the grey-green eyes that Nick’s heart ached for his friend
and still he shook his head slowly. “What do you mean, no Mac?”
Danny handed him the key and slowly Nick got him into the apartment. It
was only after he had collapsed on the couch that Danny finally spoke again and
this time, he grabbed Nick by the hand while he pleaded again. “Don’t tell Mac,
Nick, please, don’t tell Mac.”
Nick sat down next to Danny and once again shook his head. “Why Danny?
Why don’t you want Mac to know that seven guys attacked you? Why did you send
them away instead of arresting them?”
Danny was silent for a long time, long enough for Nick to become
worried about his injuries, but just as he reached for his cell phone, Danny’s
hands stopped him. “That was Sonny Sassone.”
It took Nick a moment to place the name and he sighed when he had.
Sonny Sassone... Danny had told him about the mobster boss, the head of the
Tanglewood boys. But Danny had told him even more, had told him about the abuse
he had endured at Sassone’s hands when he had been barely a teenager, and
Nick’s heart clenched at the thought of what Danny had gone through. “So if he
was here, why can’t you tell Mac?”
Danny shook his head at Nick’s question and his eyes darkened in fear.
“The last time Sonny appeared, it nearly broke the friendship Mac and I had.
You know how he treated me when you started. I can’t lose him, Nick, and if I
tell him about Sonny’s visit, then I will lose him.”
There was so much fear in Danny’s voice that Nick couldn’t help but
sigh and press Danny’s hand tightly. “Mac loves you, Danny; he will not leave
you. He trusts you and you know that.”
Danny shook his head, tried to get up and moaned slightly before he
fell back. “I know he does, but he would feel responsible. He would feel as if
he had not been here when I needed him.”
Nick sighed and yet he couldn’t help but smiling. He understood Danny’s
reasoning, knew that Mac would feel guilty indeed, but he also knew that it
would be much worse, if Mac found out from some other source. Once again, he
reached for Danny’s hand. “You have to tell him, Danny. Think about it; how
would you react, if the roles were reversed? What would you think if you had
Stella tell you about Mac being beaten up? How would you feel?”
He could see that he made an impact on Danny, but he also realized that
it was a moot point, because Mac would soon be home and there was no way Danny
could hide what happened. Carefully as not to jostle the bruised body, Nick
tried to move Danny so that he was more comfortable.
“I would hate him.” Danny’s voice was quiet, almost defeated and Nick
knew that he had gotten his point across. Danny glared at him, but it was a
weak, sad glare as he relented. “I'll tell him.”
Leaning down, Nick kissed Danny’s forehead gently. “He loves you,
Danny; don’t be afraid.”
His words had no effect on his friend, and he sighed as he saw the
exhaustion in the pale features. “I’ll get you another pain killer and then I’ll
stay with you until Mac comes home.”
Danny tried to protest, but there was no way in hell that Nick would
leave him alone. He knew that Sassone wasn’t done with Danny and he feared that
the thug would try to get to his friend while Danny was still weak from the
attack.
Nick watched as Danny slowly fell asleep from the effect of the
painkillers and the exhaustion, and silently he wondered how he should tell
Mac.
---
Mac frowned as Nick opened the door to Danny’s apartment. “What's
wrong?”
Nick’s face was a hard, cold mask and Mac tensed as he recognized the
expression as one Nick sometimes wore during unpleasant cases. Fear curled in
his belly and he pushed Nick aside in an almost frantic search for Danny. When
he saw him sleeping on the couch, Mac stopped dead. Relief hit him, but it was
short-lived when he saw the bruises that marred Danny’s face.
“What happened to him?” Mac didn’t notice how threatening his voice had
become or how he almost towered over Nick, but he realized it immediately when
the younger man stepped back. He swallowed hard and looked a bit ruefully at
Nick before he kneeled down next to Danny. His hand shook as he reached out and
caressed Danny’s face.
“Danny?” At Mac’s words, Danny visibly tensed and slowly opened his
eyes. Mac saw the fear in his lover’s eyes and felt an answering emotion
starting to grow in him. “Love, what happened?”
Danny’s eyes darted towards Nick, and Mac noticed the silent
communication that went on between the two men. It seemed that Nick was telling
Danny something, and as if on cue, Danny sighed, before he met Mac’s eyes
again. “Sonny and his friends were waiting for me when I came home.”
Nick relaxed visibly and it dawned Mac that Danny would not have told
him the truth had Nick not been right next to him. Smiling thankfully at Nick,
he met Nick’s understanding eyes. Nick smiled too before he told them that he
would go home. Mac wished him a nice evening, but he forgot about his friend
the moment he turned his attention back to Danny. Remorse filled him as he
noticed the dark bruises on Danny’s stomach, and swallowing hard, he leaned
down and gently kissed Danny’s hands.
“I’m sorry.” Danny’s voice was small and Mac could hear the fear in the
slight tremor that accompanied the three words. He wanted to pull his lover in
his arms, hold him close, but he was afraid of hurting Danny and so he just
pressed his hand tightly.
“No, Danny, don’t be sorry. You didn’t do anything wrong. Please, what
happened?” Mac felt the shiver that ran through Danny, before he began to talk.
Listening to Danny’s words was painful, but Mac had already known that. What he
hadn’t expected was the hatred that rose in him, the surge of violence whenever
he looked at Danny. He wanted to kill Sonny for what he had done to his lover,
but he buried those feelings deep inside himself.
“I’m sorry.”
Once again Danny’s words made him shiver and this time Mac gave into
the urge and pulled his lover close. His touches were tender and caring as he
lifted Danny up and carried him over to their bedroom. Once there, he put Danny
down and quickly undressed himself before he lay down next to his lover. Danny
was looking at him with sadness in his eyes and Mac sighed.
“I love you, Danny, I love you more than life. You know that, don’t
you?” Mac saw that there was still a sliver of fear in Danny’s eyes and it made
him want to curse himself. It was Mac’s own stupidity when confronted with
Danny’s past that had nurtured his lover’s insecurities, and now all he could
do was hope that he had enough time to make Danny see that he would never leave
him.
He undressed his partner tenderly and started to cover the bruises in
balm. His heart hurt at the pain he saw in Danny’s eyes, and once again he
wished to meet Sonny somewhere in a dark alley and yet he knew that he
couldn’t. It would mean that he lowered himself down to Sonny’s level and he
would never do that to Danny. Finally he covered Danny with a blanket and lay
down next to him. Danny moaned lightly when Mac pulled him towards his body,
but he didn’t complain and soon enough Mac heard the even breaths that
indicated Danny’s sleep.
He wouldn’t sleep tonight; he would stay awake and watch over his
lover.
Protect him.
---
Don watched Nick carefully while his lover tossed some broccoli and
other vegetables into a wok and started to cook them. Something had happened
since they had last seen each other, something bad, and Don frowned lightly.
Why was Nick not talking to him?
“What's wrong?” Nick turned around at Don’s words and Don flinched as
he saw the burning anger in the dark eyes. Nick’s anger wasn’t directed at him
though, and Don relaxed slowly. Nick shook his head, but then he sighed
heavily.
“Danny was attacked by Sassone.”
Of all the things Don had expected to hear, this was not one of them.
Danny had been attacked? The words hit Don like a slap in his face and he
almost dreaded the answer when he looked at Nick. “How is he?”
Nick shrugged and shook his head. “He’s pretty beat up and battered,
but he’s ok. It’s his state of mind that worries me. The first thing he told me
when I dragged him into his apartment, was that I was not to tell Mac.”
Don felt Nick’s tension and he sighed. Nick might not understand, but
Don did. Nick had not been there when the Tanglewood boys had first reappeared
in Danny’s life, but Don had and he had seen the fallout, had seen how Mac had
completely withdrawn from Danny, and he understood Danny’s fear.
“Nick, when Mac and Sonny met the first time, he implicated Danny as a
member of the Tanglewood boys. Mac... he had been a good friend to Danny
before, but after that interview he changed. He became introvert again,
suspicious of anything Danny did and it broke their friendship. I guess Danny
is just afraid.”
Don trailed off remembering those months when their team had been at
its breaking point and in the end had indeed broken. Aiden had left the team
and Nick had joined. It had changed them all and yet he understood Danny. “And
you know how afraid he is that his real past with Sassone will come out.”
Nick tensed in his arms and growled low. “Sassone should be behind bars
for what he did to Danny. And yet he’s...” He trailed off slowly, and Don
looked at Nick, concerned. His lover was tired and sad, and Don instinctively
moved over to pull him close. He wanted to say something, but Nick beat him to
it and as he spoke again, his voice held both sadness and annoyance. “He didn’t
want to tell Mac, because he was afraid that Mac would feel guilty. He was
afraid that Mac would leave him because he couldn’t protect him.”
Oh yes, Don could understand that only too well to. He could understand
it because he knew how he would feel if he came home to find Nick beaten up,
battered and bruised by an old enemy. But Don also knew that Mac would never
leave. He would feel guilty yes, he would hurt for Danny but he would not leave
him. “Mac would never leave Danny, he loves him. He needs him.”
Nick relaxed a bit against Don’s body and sighed again. “It’s just
pissin' me off that Sassone gets away with it. I mean, Danny is refusing to
press charges and he got away with murdering this boy. We try everything to
make this city safe and yet we fail to even protect our own.”
Don held him tight and silently wondered how Nick could still hold onto
his innocence, his belief in what they did despite all that he had seen and had
lived through. It was one of the many things that made Don love him and
silently he tried to communicate his love and his assurance through his touch.
They stood in the kitchen for a long time until their stomachs growled
and Nick grinned at his lover. “Hungry?”
Nodding, Don grabbed plates and cutlery before he walked out of the
kitchen. He set the table and looked into the living room to find Ziva; she
wasn’t there, but right as he was about to ask Nick, she walked through the
door. She looked better, Don thought silently, less strained, less haggard, and
once again he was awed by Nick’s kindness. Ziva smiled at him and Nick as they
sat down. “I thought, if I can borrow your kitchen, I would like to cook for
you and your team on Saturday. I have to get back on Sunday, but I wanted to
say thank you to all of you. If you would like that, I mean.”
Don and Nick shared a quick smile. “Food is always appreciated, Ziva,
don’t worry.”
---
Ziva hadn’t wanted to listen to Don and Nick’s conversation. All she
had wanted was a glass of water after a hard work out, but then she had felt
the tension in the kitchen and had slowed down. For a moment she had been
afraid that Don and Nick were arguing and that she might be the reason, but
when she had stepped back, she had caught Nick’s next words.
“Danny was attacked by Sassone.”
The anger that rose in her at those words surprised her. She wasn’t one
to get involved, wasn’t someone who made friends and cared about them. Her life
had taught her not to get attached, not to care and yet it had only taken five
days with the New York team to change that.
Ziva saw Nick and Don as her friends, saw even Danny and Mac as
friends, although she knew that Mac surely didn’t share the sentiment. It
didn’t matter though, she realized. Friendship was something that was there
whether or not it was returned. Care and concern were emotions that had nothing
to do with the cold logic she had learned before and it made her feel good that
she could feel.
Right now, though, she was seething. The longer she listened, the more
she put one and one together and the information she had read in Danny’s file
suddenly appeared in a completely different light. The realization was like a
punch in the gut and only fuelled the rage she felt. At the same time it calmed
her, and she slowly walked back to her room where she grabbed her phone and
dialed a number.
---
*Washington*
Gibbs wasn’t good in listening to others, and he certainly didn’t see
himself as someone who could comfort people well, but he was good in letting
someone rant and vent, or at least he was good at it if he liked the person.
Listening to Mac however was hard, harder than he had ever thought because he
could understand his friend only too well, understood the rage and helplessness
that Mac felt.
“I wish I could do something, anything...” With those words Mac fell silent
and Gibbs heard the fear underneath the frustration.
“You are, you’re there for him.” His words sounded empty to him and the
deep sigh from the other end proved that he had been right with this thought.
Mac remained silent for a moment, then just as Gibbs was about to ask
if he was still on the other line, Mac spoke again. “Not when it counts, I
wasn’t there, Jethro, and if Nick hadn’t shown up, then Danny...”
This time the despair in Mac’s voice made Gibbs shiver. He knew what it
was that Mac didn’t want to say, knew that just the thought of Danny being
raped or beaten to death was enough to make Mac see red.
“Do you remember what you told me, when Tony was arrested? That I need
to believe that he has a guardian angel who can be there when I can’t?” Mac
didn’t answer Gibbs’ question, but still Gibbs continued quietly. “I can only
tell you the same now. Believe that Danny has a guardian angel, that there is
someone watching out for him when you can’t be there. Can you believe that?”
“No.” Mac’s answer was flat and cold. Gibbs smiled despite the answer
though, because he too didn’t want to believe in some divine intervention when
it came to the security of his lover and yet, he had learned that he had no
other choice.
“You can’t always protect him and all you can do is trust him to be
strong enough to come to you and ask for help.”
Mac’s laugh was hard, bitter and his next words were just as bitter. “I
trust him, Jethro, it’s the others that I don’t trust.”
Gibbs shivered at the despair in Mac’s voice and as they said good-bye,
he spoke silently and intently. “Mac, I know what your heart tells you to do,
but don’t go there, don’t do it. Because it won’t solve anything.”
Mac didn’t answer, but Gibbs hoped that his friend had understood. Gibbs
had gone the road of vengeance once and it had proved that violence was not the
answer to a threat. And yet, he understood that Mac was ready and prepared to
do anything to protect those he loved. Sighing again, he looked at his phone
for a long time, before he dialed Stella’s number.
“Jethro, how are you?” Stella sounded surprised to hear him, but the
longer he spoke, the more he could hear understanding coloring her voice.
“I will look out for them, don’t worry.” She spoke strongly and
clearly, but then her voice turned colder. “And you must understand one thing,
Jethro, Mac would never resort to violence. I know him, Jethro, and he is too
conscious of what he’s capable of, what he could unleash inside his soul if he
ever went down that road.”
Maybe she was right, Gibbs thought, maybe Mac had such a tight reign
over his emotions that he would be able to contain his hatred, but whereas
Stella understood Mac the CSI, Gibbs understood Mac the Marine.
“Just watch him, ok?”
She thanked him for the heads up and promised to let him know if
something happened. Gibbs sat down in his chair and felt the aftereffects of
the news make him tremble. How would he feel, if Tony had been attacked like
this?
The thought made him shiver even more and he got up quickly and walked
over towards the bedroom. Tony was asleep already and with a fond smile, Gibbs
looked at his partner. Tony looked younger when asleep, more vulnerable and
Gibbs’ hand trembled as he reached out to caress Tony’s face. If it weren’t for
Mac, Tony wouldn’t be here, wouldn’t be sleeping in his bed. Mac had opened his
eyes, had shown him that it was possible to have a relationship with Tony. He
owed Mac, but he also considered the other man a real friend.
He wanted to help him and it almost killed him that he couldn’t.
---
*New York*
Mac watched Danny sleep. He saw every emotion on the beloved face, saw
how pain marred the relaxed features when Danny moved, saw how his lover
reached out for him, saw the tension and he noticed the moment when Danny’s
sleep turned into a nightmare.
Danny whimpered and started to move faster. Danny’s hands were
clenching to fists and Mac immediately leaned down to soothe his lover. He
touched Danny gently and felt his heart break when Danny screamed with fear. “Danny,
please wake up. You’re safe here. You’re with me.”
For a long time, Mac held his breath while Danny struggled against his
arms, fought against the tender caresses and cried against the loving words.
Finally though, Danny opened his eyes and immediately stopped fighting. His
pupils were large in the darkness of the room, giving him the look of a
frightened animal. He stared at Mac with his face frozen in terror for seconds
before he crumbled against his lover. “Hold me, please.”
He didn’t have to ask twice and Mac gently cradled the bruised body
against his own, holding Danny close, telling him how much he loved him, how
proud he was to be Danny’s lover and how he would do anything to protect him.
Danny slowly relaxed against him, and Mac heard the deep breaths, which
indicated that the nightmare had passed. It was only then that he himself dared
to relax. He wanted to go out and hunt Sonny down and make him pay.
Mac knew that he could do it, knew that he still was good enough to
sneak up to the bastard and slit his throat without leaving a trace of himself
behind.
But he was not that kind of person.
He fought everyday on the streets for justice and he would not succumb
to his own violent urges. Mac again caressed Danny gently and felt a shiver running
through him at the sudden realization of how close he had come to losing his
partner.
Fear made him catch his breath and he made a mental note to thank Nick
for saving Danny. Mac took a deep breath and pulled Danny closer towards
himself. He couldn’t lose him.
---
It was a damn shame that the Texan had interrupted him, Sonny mused as
he lay on the bed. He had sent his latest plaything away after taking him hard
and yet Sonny didn’t feel satisfied. Tonight, he had wanted to sink into
Danny’s body, had wanted to hear him scream and cry out, but as they said
patience was a virtue and when he would finally possess Danny again, it would
be all the sweeter for the wait he had had.
Sonny smiled darkly as he imagined how Taylor had freaked out when he’d
seen Danny. Despite what he had told Danny, Sonny knew that Taylor would never
break it off with Danny, and boy, he could surely understand the CSI. Danny had
the sweetest ass Sonny had ever had and he had seen how Taylor looked at Danny,
had seen the possessive look in Taylor’s eyes.
No, Taylor would never send Danny away, which meant that Sonny had to
make sure Taylor was occupied differently before he made another move on Danny.
Next time, he would not fail; next time Danny would be his.
---
*Las Vegas*
Grissom stared at the phone for a long time before he dialed Nick’s
number. He hadn’t spoken to his friend since he had made the call to Don Flack.
Grissom knew that Nick felt betrayed, and logically he understood why, but how
should he have told Nick?
What should he had told him?
When?
They had become friends and had spoken about everything, had had great
conversations about anything under the sun; should he have just interrupted
such a talk and told Nick that there had been a second person involved?
Maybe he should have, Grissom mused silently while he listened to the
dialing tone. Maybe he should have told Nick and yet, he couldn’t forget the
sight of Nick in the throws of the terror as he had seen him on the camera feed.
The image of Nick reaching out for the gun, prepared to kill himself was burned
under his eyelids and whenever Nick closed his eyes, he saw it. With a shiver,
Grissom remembered and with a groan, he turned away.
I found closure. Nick’s words
rang through him and with a shiver Grissom realized that he hadn’t. He still
dreamed of Nick sometimes and it hurt to see him like this. It was the deeper
reason why he had never told his friend, but he knew that he was close to
losing Nick because of his fear now and that scared him more than the memory of
Nick in the greenish grave.
“Grissom, how are you?” Nick’s voice was cold and Grissom tensed. He
had heard Nick speak in the same kind of voice when he had interrogated
suspects and it brought home once again how much he had hurt his friend. Taking
a deep breath, Grissom prepared to do something he hadn’t done in a long time:
apologize.
“I’ve let you down, Nick, and I wanted to say that I’m sorry.” It
hadn’t been easy to say and after he had spoken those few words, he waited
tensely for Nick’s verdict. His friend was silent for a long time before
Grissom heard him sigh.
“Do you even know what you’re apologizing for, Gil?” Nick spoke softer
than before and this time his voice sounded almost paternal.
Grissom smiled lightly as he recognized the same interrogation
technique that he had taught Nick. “I wanted to protect you, but I forgot that
you are stronger than I give you credit for. I wanted to keep you safe and have
endangered you instead. Nick, I never wanted to hurt you, but whenever I...” He
trailed off, suddenly unsure how to explain, before he spoke again quietly.
“Whenever I think of that night or something related, I just want to make sure
you’re not hurt... Just want to protect you.”
And he had done a great job, hadn’t he? His method of protection had
almost gotten Nick accused of murder, but before he could berate himself even
more, Nick spoke again. “Gris, you have to let go of that night. You have to
forget and move on.”
All the cold had vanished and in its place was an intense care that
made Grissom shiver. “I know, but I don’t know how.” He was surprised that he
had been able to admit this so freely, but then he had never been able to hold
back in his and Nick’s phone calls. Again Nick was silent for a moment, before
Grissom heard another sigh.
“I left before you all got closure, didn’t I? I left before I was
healthy again and all you have is the image of me broken and desperate stuck in
your mind.”
He was speechless by the insight and yet Grissom knew that he shouldn’t
be. Nick had always been good at reading people, and yes, he was right about
leaving before they had found closure. Grissom wasn’t thinking when he spoke
again. “We know that you’re alright; it just makes it hard because we don’t
really know.”
Nick laughed a bit but he sobered quickly. “Tony suggested a road trip
to Vegas, and I think it’s a good idea. Maybe if you see me, if you meet Don,
then it will finally be over.”
---
*New York*
There had been a time, when the dark corners of the world had been
Ziva’s home and when she had felt more comfortable dealing with the shadows
that inhabited them than in dealing with real people. It wasn’t her world
anymore, she had left this world when she had joined NCIS. She would never return
to the shadow world of espionage and secrets, but she also knew that no one
really ever left this world behind. She would never return, but she would also
never be completely free.
It had never bothered her, because she had always known this, and yet she
had once promised herself to never contact this world again. The fact that she
had now broken her own promise should have made her feel bad, but instead, she
felt good. She was glad for the contacts she had made and for the first time,
she felt as if she could use them for something vital. Whenever she had talked
to the others before, she had had a purpose and an objective given to her by
someone, and often she hadn’t known the complete picture. This time it was
different, this time she was talking to them because she wanted to, because she
had something worth protecting.
She had heard the despair in Nick’s voice and had understood what he
hadn’t said. It had made her feel protective over Danny and Mac and Ziva knew that
they could use a little help. A little help from a friend who had hurt them
once and now was desperate to make it up to them.
She walked slowly towards the house, knowing that the two operatives
that accompanied her were right behind her, watching every step. She had been
surprised at the willingness of her contacts to join her, but when she had read
the intel provided to her, she had understood. Sonny was involved in more than
just the average gang and mob activities, had spread his business outside of
New York and was on the way to become a major force in certain trades. She
wasn’t sure if the mobster had an idea about what he was getting into. But she
didn’t spare many thoughts about it. It was her luck that Sonny’s business
touched the shady world of her former life and she wouldn’t question it.
Ziva moved through the darkness like a shadow and crouched down while
she waited for her colleagues. They joined her soon after, and quietly she
explained what she was about to do. She could see the smiles on the men’s faces
before their usual stoic expression settled in again. Together they turned
towards the garden and looked over towards Sonny’s residence. At the first
glance the house looked empty, but a closer look at the back of the house,
showed the light in two rooms and slowly they walked towards the backdoor. One
of her colleagues quickly opened the backdoor with his set of tools and moved
back towards his position. Ziva knew that she had about thirty seconds before
the alarm would go off, and as soon as the door was open, she walked inside and
drew her weapon.
---
Sonny thought he had heard someone inside, but with a shake of his head
he dismissed the thought. Looking back to the TV, he felt annoyance at the game
when a female voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts. “Get up and walk over
here.”
She was pretty and Sonny almost laughed, but then he saw her eyes, and
one look into those cold hard pools made him get up and walk towards her. She
waved him over to the security setting and smiled lightly. “Enter the code; I
don’t want the police here and neither do you.”
Her quiet intensity made him feel uncomfortable, the calmness in her
voice as she spoke of the police however brought an even stronger feeling of
wrongness with it. Who was this woman?
Sonny punched the code in and turned around with a sneer; no matter how
calm and confident she appeared, she was after all still nothing but a bitch
and he would show her who the boss was. “What do you want, Lady?”
A quick smile crossed over her face as she continued to look at him
coldly. “You’ve been messing in our business. Arms dealing? That’s too big for
a small time crook like you. You’re in over your head, Sonny Sassone.”
He had expected a lot, but her words caught him off guard and he
narrowed his eyes in anger. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
She was next to him in a second and Sonny swallowed hard as he felt the
cold steel of her gun pressed against his temple. “I’m talking about the three
shipments you received two weeks ago and about the five you’re expecting to
receive next week. I’m talking about smuggling weapons in and out of the US,
I’m talking about dealing with terrorists.”
Sonny froze at her words and shook his head. He didn’t deal with arms,
never had, but even as he tried to deny it, a tiny voice in his head told him
that she might be right. “I don’t deal with weapons and certainly not with
terrorists.”
The slap came without warning and was strong enough for him to stumble
and fall. Her eyes narrowed, she looked at him. “Then tell me, what was in the
fifteen boxes you received from the Grand Cayman two weeks ago?”
How could she know about the shipment? Sonny swallowed hard and looked
at her defiantly. “Fake electronics ware, Chinese software and DVDs, but
certainly no weapons.”
Her lips curled to a smile as she tossed him some pictures. He caught
them out of reflex and automatically looked at them. For a moment, he felt as
if his heart had stopped, and feeling numb, he stared at range of guns and grenades
that lay in the boxes labeled with his cover company. He had never ordered this
and looking at the woman in front of him, Sonny understood that he had indeed
gotten into something that was over his head. “I never ordered or did this.”
It sounded so weak, but to his surprise the woman nodded. “I know.” Her
eyes fixed him coldly. “But my superiors don’t and unless I tell them, you will
be the one they’ll target.”
She wanted something from him, Sonny realized, and feeling some the
tension in his body lessened. If it was about money or business contacts, he
would be able to get out. He was good in making deals, very good. “What do you
want?”
“Keep your hands off Danny Messer.” He had expected her to ask for
anything but that, and both surprised and shocked, he looked at her. “All this
just so you can tell me that I am not allowed to touch Danny? You don’t
understand; he’s mine, he’s always been mine and he’ll be mine again as soon as
I get Taylor.”
He could see how she tensed at his words, and in the moment of
distraction he grabbed the knife from its hiding place and jumped up. She still
had a gun, but he had a weapon too now and it made him feel better, more
powerful as he advanced her slowly. “Still feeling like ordering me around?
I’ll show you your place, bitch.”
Glass splintered behind him and he tensed as he felt more than saw a
bullet fly past his head. Frozen, he stared at her and saw her mocking smile.
“You didn’t really think that I’ve come alone, did you?”
He had thought that, if he was honest, and she must have read it in his
face as she laughed coldly before she looked outside. “Keep your hands off
Danny and you won’t see me again; hurt him or come close to him or Taylor and
you’ll wish the bullet had been meant for your head.”
Sonny looked at her and grinned. “Danny is worth a little trouble, so
what if you kill me when I take him? Maybe I just like living dangerously.”
The smile that crossed her face made him swallow hard. “I never said
that I'll kill you, Sonny, but I know that you’ll beg for death when I take you
to your new home.”
Again that cold, hard and slightly insane smile before she shrugged
lightly. “You shouldn’t hang out with terrorists, Sonny; it’s just not a
healthy habit.”
Sonny knew what she was implying and he looked at her stealthily “You
can’t prove that I had any contacts with terrorists. You can’t even prove that
I knew about the weapons, because I didn’t know.”
“No, you’re right, I can’t prove it and you probably never had any
contacts. It’s a pity really, that no one will believe you, isn’t it?” When she
looked at him this time, Sonny found he could actually feel the guns pointed at
him from his own garden. She turned around and walked towards the glass door.
Opening it, she turned once more towards him. “Stay away from Messer and
Taylor.”
She walked through the door as if she had just paid him a friendly
visit and disappeared into the darkness. For a second, Sonny was tempted to
follow her, but one look at the shattered glass window was enough to persuade
him to stay inside.
Fuming with rage, he sat down and looked at the pictures of Danny that
he had looked at all evening.
“Bitch.” He hissed as he started to tear up every single photo. “Don’t
even think you scared me.”
And yet she had scared him, not only with her implied threats, but even
more with the picture that she had put on the table in an almost mocking
gesture. Sonny stared at the weapons and swallowed again. Rage and anger
consumed him as the realization that he had been betrayed started to settle in.
Forget Danny and Taylor, forget the woman and her James Bond routine, he had
more urgent problems.
Sonny’s eyes were blazing and his hand was trembling as he reached for
the phone to call his second in command. He had a traitor to find.
---
Stella fumed as she opened the door of her apartment. She hated office
politics and with Mac taking off in order to look after Danny, it had been her
and Nick going to the monthly staff meeting. She had barely kept herself in check,
when one of the heads had started griping about the lab’s rising costs and how
it was a waste of money to keep expensive lab rats when in the end the
criminals were getting free because of procedural problems.
It had been Nick who had held her back and then stood up to defend the
lab. Only he hadn’t defended it, instead he had calmly laid out the facts and
figures in a PowerPoint presentation, had explained the expenditures and the
increases while at the same time making it very clear, that none of the
procedural errors had ever happened in the lab. At the end of the eight minutes
presentation, Stella had noticed how Ralph, Mac’s boss, had looked at Nick with
a fond smile while the critics had looked peeved.
She herself had been surprised by Nick’s political aptness, but at a
comment from her, he had only smiled bitterly. “If you have a father who’s a
Supreme Court judge and a mother who’s a state attorney, you learn a lot about
politics.”
Nick had changed the topic afterwards and Stella had gotten the hint
that he didn’t want to talk about his family. She knew that they weren’t close,
but other than the odd and very rare comment about them, she never heard Nick
talk about them. Family, it seemed was something of a taboo topic in the office
with Danny’s troubled family, Nick’s estranged, and her nonexistent one. Right
now, though, she was home and she smiled as she smelled the delicious scents
coming from the kitchen.
“You’re spoiling me.” Frankie turned around at her words and smiled at
her. He looked good in the white t-shirt and the stubble in the face and Stella
was surprised by the love she felt. His hug was tight and she gratefully leaned
against him.
“You are a woman who deserves to be spoiled, because you never spoil
yourself.” He kissed her gently before he turned back to the food and arranged
the Thai curry on the plates. He handed her a bottle of wine and led her over
to the living room. Stella gasped a bit as she saw the candles and the flowers.
They ate almost in silence, enjoying the fact that they didn’t have to
fill the quiet with words, and Stella could feel herself relax completely. The
stress and worry of the last couple of days finally melted away, and when
Frankie pulled her towards the couch and into his arms, she sighed silently.
“I’m glad you’re here.”
Frankie smiled and leaned down to kiss her gently before he got up and
left the room for a moment. When he returned he was carrying a large wrapped
box. “I have a present for you. It’s a sculpture; I made it thinking of you.”
Touched and surprised, Stella opened the box and carefully lifted the
sculpture out of it. It was beautiful, a sculpture of a woman's bust, split
open to reveal a pure white face. Looking at it, Stella could feel a shiver run
through it at the sight of the brightness and vulnerability of the face. She
turned towards Frankie with shining eyes. “It’s wonderful.”
“It’s called Aresanob. It means soul of a woman.”
Stella leaned back into Frankie’s arms, feeling safe as he held her
while they both looked at the sculpture.
“You’re tired, aren’t you?”
Frankie’s words were gentle and soon enough, Stella was lying in his
arms, falling almost asleep when something trickled her mind, something about the
name of the sculpture made her pause, but the thought disappeared before she
could get a hold onto it and with a sigh she fell asleep.
---
*Chapter
12 – Feeling safe*
*Washington DC*
Tony eyed Ziva carefully before he attacked. She defended herself and
immediately went into a counterattack, but unlike the previous two times, Tony
had mentally prepared himself for it and smoothly evaded her lunge. He
sidestepped her kick and moved quickly to intercept and at the same time stop
her attack. She reacted with a side kick which he caught and turned away only
to launch his own advance. His move caught her unaware and taking advantage of
it, Tony moved to the side and within seconds had her pinned onto her back.
“Well done, DiNozzo.” Jethro’ voice made them both turn around and for
a moment, Tony couldn’t hide the smile on his face at the obvious pride in
Jethro’ eyes. Ziva laughed and shook her head.
“When did you learn those moves?” Tony smiled, but his smile faded as
he remembered when and why he had learned to fight as dirty as possible. “When
I was with the force in Peoria. I had more spare time there and learning some
good self defense just seemed like a good idea.”
He could feel Jethro’ eyes on his back and knew immediately that his
comment would garner some questions later tonight. Well, it couldn’t be helped,
Tony shrugged mentally, Jethro and he had not been together for a long time and
there still were some secrets that he wanted to keep away from his partner.
This was not one of them and so he smiled at Jethro promising him with his eyes
that he would explain later. Jethro nodded and disappeared while Tony and Ziva
walked towards the cool down area.
“So, how was New York?” Ziva shrugged and looked pensive at Tony’s
question. She stretched her back and remained in the position for a couple of
seconds without saying anything. Tony too began his usual cool down routine
when she spoke suddenly. “It was weird, you know. I still don’t understand why
Nick would want to help me...”
She trailed off and Tony smiled lightly. He too didn’t understand
really, but he had learned one thing over the past months since he had met
Nick. “He’s one of the nicest people in the world. If he feels like he can help
you, he will.”
Ziva nodded and grinned for a moment before she bend down and pressed
her upper body against her legs. Tony couldn’t help but ogle her butt only to
get a glare from her. “Stop that, or I’ll kick your ass again.”
Her words made him grin and he shook his head with an obvious and fake
leer. “You know you can’t take me.”
For a moment she stared at him with a challenge and then grinned before
she turned away. “No, cause that’s Gibbs’ job.”
She disappeared in the women’s changing room and Tony was left alone in
the practice area staring at her back with a dumbfound expression. He had had
no idea that she knew and with a shiver he wondered what it meant for him and
Gibbs. The reality of what had happened slowly caught up with him and he raced
towards the men’s changing room, showered and was out and waiting in front of
the women’s door in a matter of minutes. When Ziva walked outside, he tried to
go for a casual pose, but gave up when she frowned at him. “What’s wrong Tony?”
What was wrong? How could she even ask this? Tony shook his head and
sighed before he looked at her again. “Just tell me what you are going to do
about this and when, ok? Cause if you go to the director, then at least give me
the chance to tell Gibbs, please.”
Her eyes widened and Tony saw how she tensed for a moment, before she
reached out and clasped his shoulder. “No Tony, you don’t understand. I won’t
tell anyone. I know that Gibbs doesn’t favor you, so why would I go to the
director?”
Surprised at her easy acceptance, Tony looked at her and shrugged.
“Maybe because we’re to guys and because Gibbs is in the Marines.”
“So?” Ziva’s reaction was an answering shrug, before she shook her
head. “I will never understand why the US military doesn’t accept gays in the
military. We have many gays and lesbians serving in Israel and they do so with
just the same pride and strength as everybody else.”
Her words made Tony stare at her and she smiled almost sadly. “When
your country is under a constant threat of annihilation the way my country is,
you don’t care about the sexual orientation of someone who can defend your
border. You are just glad that they are defending it.”
Ziva had rarely ever spoken about her own country and Tony saw that
there was a longing in her face even as she turned away from him. His question
was instant and spontaneous. “Do you miss home?”
She tensed and as she looked at him again, her eyes were hard. “This is
my home now, Tony, not Israel.”
Shocked at her statement, Tony took a step back and stared at her when
she visibly steeled herself and forced a smile on her face. “Look Tony, there’s
a reason I left, let’s just keep it at that ok?”
He wanted to know more, but her face was closed off and her eyes were
cold, so he remained silent, but at the same time promised himself to call
Nick. Maybe his friend could help him solve the mystery.
---
*New York*
There was blood everywhere. Elliot and Olivia exchanged a horrified
look as they walked into the elegantly furnished flat. There were blood smears
on the walls, blood drops on the floor from the kitchen to the bath room and a
huge pool of blood around the victim in the living room. The young woman had
once been pretty, but now after someone had not only stabbed her multiple times
but also destroyed her face with something heavy, she was hardly recognizable.
“Damn.” Olivia’s curse reached Elliot’s ears and he nodded silently. He
hated moments like this and even after all those years, he hadn’t gotten used
to walk into someone’s privacy and see it so cruelly invaded. Looking at his
friend, he nodded and agreed with her. “Yeah.”
“Hey guys.” Elliot turned around at the sound of Nick Stokes’ voice and
he saw how Nick looked at their victim with sad eyes before he swallowed hard.
“Someone really did a number on her.”
Elliot nodded, but was distracted when Stella Bonasera walked into the
room. He had worked with her before and liked her no nonsense attitude as well
as her keen sense of wrong and right, still he felt a lot more self conscious
around her than around Nick or anyone else of the department. Stella Bonasera
was probably the most beautiful woman he had ever met, but even as the thought
entered Elliot’s mind, he pushed it away with force. It wasn’t the right time
to think about a woman’s beauty not with another woman laying dead right in
front of them.
“Lydia Epsom-Manner. Thirty three years old, stock broker at Goldman
Sachs. Her colleagues reported her missing when she didn’t appear at work on
Monday, her landlord found her.”
Nick nodded absently at Olivia’s resume and Elliot watched as he looked
around. “Must have been good at her job, just look at all the art work in her
flat.”
Elliot followed Nick’s gaze and shrugged after taking a look at the
various photographs. The images were beautiful, but he wasn’t an art lover or
connoisseur and had no idea what the pictures were worth. Nick on the other
hand whistled silently after taking a closer look. “These are original Peter
Lik’s. They go for a hell of a lot of money. All I got are the books...”
Nick shrugged and turned towards Stella, Elliot saw how they exchanged
a look and he could see the silent communication that went on between the two
of them. He had watched them work before and seeing them like this made him
understand some of the rumors about them being an item. He knew of course that
this wasn’t the case, knew that Nick was committed to a very deep relationship
with Don, but there was a connection between Stella and Nick that made Elliot
wish for a moment he were anywhere but here.
“I’ll take the living room. “ Nick’s words broke the spell around
Elliot and he quickly left the room, but not quickly enough for Olivia. He felt
her eyes on his back as he walked over towards the bedroom. Elliot sighed as he
accepted the fact that he would be grilled with questions tonight not only by a
one, but two women that made their living by interrogating suspects.
The bedroom was devoid of blood although it too bore signs of a
struggle. Elliot watched as Stella processed it and looked around when his gaze
fell onto a statue that stood in one of the corners. It was a beautiful piece
of a woman standing with her hands above her head holding a bird. The woman and
the main figure had been crafted from a dark almost black stone while the bird
was white pure marble. It gave a fascinating contrast and intrigued he walked
closer.
“Detective, you’re walking in my crime scene.” Stella’s words were
friendly but held a slight reproach that made Elliot freeze. “Sorry, I wasn’t
thinking.”
She smiled friendly and shook her head. “No, it’s ok, I processed
everything over there, just didn’t want you to wander any further.”
Stella walked up next to him and looked at the statue. “Nice piece,
isn’t it?”
Elliot nodded and bend down to read the name of the artist. There was
however no name instead there was a small plaque which read ‘Samperonnem’. “Samperonnem, do you have
any idea who the artist is?”
Stella shrugged and frowned. “No, but I know someone I can ask. Just
let me check with him ok?”
She walked out of the room and Elliot heard her talk quietly to someone
on the phone. Him, he thought and was surprised by the disappointment and stab
of hurt that flashed through him. He pushed it aside and looked at the statue
again.
“It’s an anagram.” Nick’s voice from the bedroom door interrupted his
study and Elliot turned towards his friend. “What do you mean by this?”
Nick walked fully into the room and pulled out his notepad writing down
the name of their victim and the name of the statue. “She was called Epsom-Manner.
Now compare the name and the statue’s name. Samperonnem is an anagram for
Epsom-Manner.”
Elliot stared at Nick in awe. “Wow, how did you find this out so fast?”
Nick grinned. “As a kid, I loved anagrams and once you’ve trained your
mind to see the words in a sequence of letters, you see them easily.”
Staring at the statue again, Elliot looked at Nick. “So our victim was
the artist?”
Nick shrugged and nodded. “Maybe that or she knew them.”
---
Stella frowned when her call to Frankie went straight through to voice
mail, but knowing her man, he was probably busy with his art. She smiled a bit
before she left a message to call her back because she needed her help with a
case.
Olivia joined her just as she put her phone away and Stella smiled at
the other detective. She liked Olivia, liked her straight forward way, the
determination and discipline she used to work those often horrid cases. “We’re
pretty much done here, so we’ll wait for your results. Can you give us a call?”
Stella nodded her assent at Olivia’s words, knowing that she and Nick
would spend some more time in the flat. “We’ll call, but it’s going to take
some time, there is a lot to process here.”
Olivia looked around and Stella saw the slight wince as their eyes met
again and she couldn’t help but nod, it would be a long day for her and Nick.
Stabler walked out of the bedroom and joined Olivia. Stella could feel
his eyes on her and like always it made her want to brush her hair out of her
face, but she repressed the impulse and instead wished them a nicer day and
promised to call as the two detectives got ready to leave.
Sighing she looked at the mess in the hallway and went over to retrieve
her kit. She worked slowly, diligently, because she knew that Lydia deserved
answers and the only way they were going to get them was through a thorough
processing.
---
*Washington DC*
Gibbs looked down at the dead body and sighed before he started to
issue orders. “Ziva, you take pictures. McGee, DiNozzo, I want you to canvass
the neighborhood maybe someone saw something. And DiNozzo, call Ducky, he
doesn’t need to come out here.”
No, he thought as he looked down at Sergeant Smith. There was no ME
needed to determine what had killed the soldier. The first responding officers had
pulled him out of the pond and there was foam around his mouth which proved
that he had died by drowning. Still despite having his hands and feet tied
together with a string, the dead man still looked deceptively peaceful and
Gibbs shook his head before he turned towards the young woman who stood next to
an officer. “My condolences, Mrs. Smith.”
The victim’s wife shook his hand before she turned away to compose
herself. “He just wanted to defend his family and they... they even laughed
while he drowned.”
Anger gripped Gibbs hard at the senseless death of a good soldier. He
wanted so say something else, but before he got to ask Smith’s wife a question,
she spoke again. “He was serving in Afghanistan, you know, and I was so scared
that he wouldn’t come back to me. And then he is back and this happens. Why,
Agent Gibbs, why?”
He didn’t know, couldn’t answer her and once more he felt out of his
debts, but before his lack of word became obvious, Tony was there and calmly
put a hand on the woman’s shoulder. “We don’t know why, Mrs. Smith, but we will
make sure that you get some answers, I promise you that. Now why don’t we go
back inside and you sit down a bit?”
Gibbs watched how Tony led the woman away and marveled at the innate
gentleness his lover displayed. It was something he had noticed many times and
before they had become lovers, he had made fun of Tony because of it. He didn’t
feel like it, but for appearances sake he still slapped Tony’s head when he
came back and barked at him. “Done flirting?”
Tony grinned at him, but sobered quickly. “Give me some credit, boss,
she has just lost her husband. I’m not that much of a leech.”
He sounded put off, but the relaxed stance told Gibbs that Tony knew
Gibbs wasn’t serious. It annoyed him to pretend, went against Gibbs’ nature,
but he knew the consequences and any annoyance was shoved aside when he looked
over to the pool.
“Bastards.” Tony looked up and when their eyes met, Gibbs saw the same
anger and determination burning in Tony’s hazel eyes than Gibbs felt. They
would get whoever had done this to Sergeant Smith and they would give closure
to his wife.
“Let’s get to work and get them.” Tony nodded curtly and went back to
searching the perimeter for any evidence the killers might have left behind.
Gibbs went back to Mrs. Smith and kindly started to ask her questions
of what had happened. She had calmed down obviously and talked to him with a
quiet, almost indifferent voice. Gibbs knew that it was a distancing mechanism
and his heart ached for the young woman who had lost her husband to such a
violent death.
“Can you tell me exactly what has happened?”
She looked at him and nodded slowly before she started to narrated the
gruesome story. “We wanted to have a nice evening, you know, just some relaxing
time and I told Jack that I would run to the store and see if they had some of
the cake he liked so much. When I came back, I saw that the door was open and
there was a strange car in the drive way. I thought he’d gotten a visitor, but
then I heard the laughter in the back and that’s when I saw them. They... “Her
voice broke and Gibbs carefully put a hand on hers to calm her. She looked up
and swallowed hard. “They laughed, Agent Gibbs, I could see how they stood
there and laughed...”
Again her voice broke, before she continued. “I screamed and they came
up to me. I was sure that they would kill me too, but one of them looked at me
and hit me and then everything was dark.”
Why hadn’t they killed her? The question was obvious in her eyes, but
it was also something Gibbs wondered about. He didn’t think that she was
involved with the killers, but maybe the killers were involved with her without
her knowing it. “Jack just wanted to forget the war, you know, he’s said that
he’d seen things he never wanted to see and he just wanted to forget... And
now, he’s dead...”
There was nothing Gibbs could say to her but promise her once again
that they would do anything to find who had killed her husband.
---
*New York*
“Mac, I’m fine!” Danny glared at his partner, but Mac didn’t even
blink. For a moment, Danny still glared before his eyes softened and he reached
out to caress Mac’s face. “I’m alright, Mac, I’ve been given the go ahead for
work again. I’m fine.”
He knew that Mac was scared of letting him back into the field and
somehow he could understand his lover, but on the other hand Mac needed to
understand, that Danny was capable of taking care of himself. Mac leaned into
Danny’s hand and Danny felt his heart constrict at the gesture. Ever since
Sonny’s attack, Mac had become overprotective, treating Danny as if he were
made of glass. Danny had loved the care while he was sick, but now that he was
healthy again, he wanted his Mac back. Smiling slightly, he leaned against
Mac’s body and slipped his hand underneath Mac’s suit jacket. He knew that the
way they stood no one would be able to see that he ran his fingers along Mac’s
spine with a gentle almost teasing motion.
“What are you doing Danny?” Mac hissed, but the way his body melted
against Danny’s told him that although Mac might protest, he still enjoyed
being this close to Danny. It was then when a daring thought crossed Danny’s
mind and with a quick glance at the watch, he decided that it was late enough
in the day that he could risk it.
“I need you tonight, Mac.” It was in the way he said it, that had Mac
tense, but Danny didn’t give him any time to protest. “It has been so long and
with Sonny...”
He shuddered at the thought of Sonny’s threats and disentangled himself
from Mac to meet his partner’s eyes. Mac’s eyes were dark with memories but
also full of guilt. Danny knew that Mac still felt guilty for not being there
when Sonny had attacked him and he wanted to rid his lover from this guilt.
“I need to know I’m yours.” The words were whispered, but they had the
desired effect and Mac’s eyes darkened until they almost seemed black with
sudden arousal. Danny watched as Mac swallowed hard and visibly restrained
himself from grabbing Danny. For a moment he just stood there and panted
silently before he got himself under control again and looked at Danny. The
promise in his eyes made Danny shiver.
“You will, tonight.”
---
*Washington DC*
Tony had been able to push Ziva’s revelation aside as long as they had
been out at the crime scene. He had concentrated on doing his job, talking to
people and searching for clues as to who might have killed Sergeant Smith. It
had been almost routine to lose himself in work, but now as he sat in the
office alone, he could feel the tension returning.
Ziva knew.
She wasn’t the only one of course, Abby knew and Tony guessed that
Ducky at least had a suspicion, Mac, Nick and the others knew and then of
course there was Tom Morrow. Their old director had been informed by Jethro
himself in order to protect them. Tony had been fine with them knowing, because
he knew them well enough to trust them. Ziva was another issue.
Could he trust her?
It wasn’t that Tony was terrified of being outed himself. If she were to
spill their secret to the director, Tony would resign, but he was confident
that he would find another job. He was good in what he did, had become a fine
investigator and just the fact that he had worked for Jethro for such a long
time would make it easy to find another job. No, it wasn’t his own fate that
worried Tony. It was Jethro.
Jethro was after all still a Marine, was still part of an institution
which sent men to prison because they were gay and although, Tony doubted that
this would happen to Jethro, he knew his partner well enough to know that a
dishonorable discharge would hurt Jethro deeply. Jethro was a Marine through
and through, he lived the code and the principles. Tony remembered the awe he
had felt when he had met Ernie Jost and how Jethro had fought for the other
man. Jethro was a good man and Tony had known that even before he had fallen in
love with him.
Taking a deep breath, Tony silently vowed that he would protect Jethro,
but even as he thought it, it made him smile. Jethro seemed to be the most
unlikely man to need protection and yet. Tony had seen him vulnerable and it
made him want to get up and go home to his lover, made him want to walk into
Jethro’s house and hold him close.
“Anthony, what are you still doing here?” Surprised at hearing a
familiar, yet unexpected voice Tony looked up to see Ducky stand next to his
desk. He smiled at the ME and pointed towards the files he was reading.
“I’m trying to get an overview of the Smith’s circle of friends. We
were wondering why she wasn’t harmed, but even she seems honest. So I thought
that maybe she’s had someone admiring her from afar.”
Ducky nodded gravely and handed him the autopsy report. “No surprises
there, he drowned. Terrible way to die, they say it’s one of the most painful
deaths at all.”
Swallowing hard, Tony tired to push aside the memory of suffocating.
During the plague he had sometimes felt as if he couldn’t get enough air, as if
he were drowning in his own body and despite the recovery he had made, the
memory still haunted him.
“But your answer doesn’t explain why you are still here.” Tony sighed
at Ducky’s quiet words and looked down at the files. “I just feel like I have
to do something, you know.”
Ducky remained silent until Tony looked up and met his eyes. He saw the
gentle kindness in Ducky’s eyes and swallowed hard. “You’re becoming more and
more like Jethro, Anthony, and that is not necessarily a good thing.”
It was both flattering and insulting to be likened to Jethro, but with
Ducky, Tony knew that the older man wanted to make a point. Ducky had been a
friend of Jethro’s for a long time and had probably seen him at his lowest.
Tony wasn’t sure where he ranked on Ducky’s list, but he was sure that there
was some kind of paternal care that now shone in Ducky’s eyes.
“You’ve won, Ducky, I’ll go home.”
Tony shut his computer down and packed his things while Ducky just
stood there and watched him. “Are you going home too?”
Ducky shook his head and to Tony’s surprise he could see a blush
coloring Ducky’s face. “I’ll be meeting a friend.”
Some part of Tony wanted to pry and ask for details, but the
uncharacteristic shyness in Ducky’s behavior made him remain silent until they
reached their cars. “Have fun, Ducky, and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
Ducky laughed at that, but as Tony got into his car, Ducky turned
around again. “Say hi to Jethro.”
---
*New York*
Mac could feel the nervous energy that seemed to thrum through Danny
and he knew that it was his promise in the afternoon that had Danny on the
edge. Smiling inwardly he watched his partner and slowly pulled him towards his
body. Danny relaxed immediately against him before he turned around and
snuggled even closer.
“Should I go and prepare myself?” The words never failed to make Mac
tense with desire, but today he shook his head. “No Danny, I will do that
myself.”
Confused, Danny looked at Mac and Mac saw the moment of insecurity that
passed through the grey-green eyes before they went carefully blank. Sighing
lightly he smiled at Danny and leaned down to capture Danny’s lips in a tender
kiss. Danny opened up immediately and Mac was flooded with the taste of his
lover, a taste he was addicted to. When they broke apart, Danny was flushed and
breathing harder and Mac smiled again. “I promised to make you mine, promised
that after tonight you know again that you’re mine and I don’t need toys or
restraints for that.”
Danny shivered at the words and Mac slowly got up lifting Danny up with
him. For a moment his lover frowned at him, but then he let Mac carry him
towards their bedroom. Mac lay Danny in the middle of the bed and slowly
started to undress him with tender hands until Danny was naked and trembling in
front of him. The sight took Mac’s breath away and he moaned lightly. “You are
so beautiful.”
Reaching out to caress the soft skin, Mac’s hand followed every muscle
in Danny’s body as he traced first along the collar bone then along both arms
down to each finger and as he felt Danny starting to shiver, he followed his
hands with his lips.
“Mac, please.” Danny’s voice was strained as he pleaded with his lover
and Mac looked up from his task of caressing the left hip bone only to find
Danny look at him almost desperately. “If you continue this, then I won’t be
able to hold on.”
Mac understood what Danny wanted, but it wasn’t what Mac wanted, not
tonight at least. Tonight was about love and belonging and not about domination
and possession and Mac would make sure that at the end of the night, Danny
would understand the difference too. Removing his hands from Danny’s body he
moved over the naked man until their eyes were at the same level and with a
sigh, Danny pushed against Mac’s still clothed groin.
“You don’t have to hold on, Danny, I told you, tonight is all about
you, about you being mine. I want you to hold nothing back, I want you to come
if you need to and not when I say it.” He saw the surprise and wonder in
Danny’s eyes and smiled when Danny swallowed hard.
“This is new, isn’t it? It’s a new version of the game.” Danny’s voice
was tentative and Mac smiled gently. “It’s not a game, Danny, not like the
others. This is real.”
And with those words, he leaned down to kiss Danny passionately almost bruising his lips while
his left hand found Danny’s cock and started to stroke him rhythmically. Danny
gasped into the kiss, and moaned against Mac’s lips as his body started to
tremble and shake and Mac felt the warmth of Danny’s release flow over his
hand.
He gentled his kiss, carefully removed himself from Danny’s body and
quickly undressed before he lay down next to his lover. Danny watched him with
a sated look in his eyes, but behind the drowsiness that came with the climax
there was a slight wariness as to what Mac had planned next. Mac smiled
reassuringly and reached for the massage oil that Danny kept in their
nightstand.
“Turn over, Danny.” Danny followed Mac’s command immediately, and Mac
had to close his eyes for a second at the implied trust of Danny’s action. He gathered
his control and spread a little oil over Danny’s back. “Relax, love, just
relax.”
He felt Danny shiver once as his hand’s touched Danny’s back and waited
patiently for Danny to do as told before he started to knead the tense muscles,
caressing the skin as he went, sprinkling kisses in between his touches until
Danny was so relaxed that he almost melted into Mac’s touch. Smiling with love,
Mac leaned down and traced Danny’s spine with his lips, following each
vertebrae with his tongue until he reached Danny’s butt.
“Mac?” Danny’s voice was hoarse, but at the same time questioning as
Mac’s tongue slipped into the crack and further down. Rimming was something
that Mac had only done in their scenes and even then he had only done it on
rare occasions, but today he wanted Danny to feel more than he had ever felt
with him, more than he had ever felt with anyone and with a hungry groan Mac
started to kiss Danny’s most private area.
---
Don looked up from the game he was watching when Nick walked into their
shared apartment and he smiled as Nick bent down to give him a quick kiss.
“You’re early. After what Stabler told me, I’d have guessed you get
stuck in the lab forever.” Nick shrugged out of his jacket, removed the holster
and put gun, badge and mobile phone on the cupboard before he sat down next to
Don. “We logged the evidence, and got the analysis running, so there’s nothing
for us to do right now. This is the real world not some cop show, you know.”
Don grinned at Nick’s comment, knowing only too well how annoyed Nick
got when he accidentally stumbled over one of the popular forensic crime shows
in which a DNA analysis took never longer than three hours and a mass
spectrometer search was done in a matter of minutes. It wasn’t that Nick didn’t
get the concept of altered universes, he just hated how the movie reality made
his life harder. “I tell them that an
analysis takes ten hours and all they tell me is that in ‘CSU Chicago’ they
only need a couple of minutes.”
“Mom brought some lasagna over, do you want some?” Nick looked up and
smiled brightly at the prospect of home made lasagna. Don grinned and went to
the kitchen to put the lasagna in the oven. Setting the time, he watched the
food for a moment before he returned into the living room and sat down next to
his partner. “So you have any leads yet?”
Nick shook his head and shrugged. “Nothing really. The neighbor said
that the victim had a boyfriend, but she didn’t know more than that he has dark
curly hair and is tall, which fits probably half of all men in New York. We
might get something from DNA though, she fought hard, so maybe we get lucky.”
Don could see that Nick had something on his mind though and so he
prompted his partner with a nudge of his elbow. “What is it?”
Again he received a shrug from Nick and a deep sigh before Nick
continued to speak. “Something about this whole case bothers me, you know, I
just feel like I’m not seeing something that I should see. It’s like there is
evidence right in front of me, but I don’t see it because it’s masked so well.”
Nick sighed and leaned closer to Don. Don loved those moments when they
were domestic together, loved the support and strength that he got from this
relationship and he knew that Nick felt the same. “Talk me through it, maybe
you’ll see it.”
They had done this before and often it had given them a new insight and
knowing this Nick started to speak. “The victim is well off financially, she
worked as a consultant for large banks and had several large projects going. At
work, her colleagues say that she’s single, her neighbor says that she had a
boyfriend. She was beaten post mortem, raped and then stabbed, but we haven’t
found the murder weapon yet. She fought, but there was no sign of forced
entry...”
Nick took a deep breath and Don waited for him to continue. “We got a
vague description of the boyfriend as being tall, muscular and dark haired. We
got several DNA samples which are being analyzed as we speak and lifted about
half a dozen prints but nothing in CODIS.”
Don felt the tension in Nick and questioned his lover quietly. “What is
it that confuses you?”
“She had this statue in her bedroom that was obviously wiped clean. I
mean it was literally spotless, we tested it and there was not even a trace of
dust on it. I think she was beaten with it, but why? I mean he killed her in
the living room, so why use this statue to beat her?”
Nick trailed off as cheers erupted from the TV and for the couple
minutes they didn’t talk while they watched the game. During the short
commercial break Nick sighed. “I just have a bad feeling about this. I don’t
know, it’s just something in my gut that tells me there’s more.”
Don pulled his lover closer and shrugged. “You’ll find him, I know.”
Nick nodded and grinned as another goal against the Rangers fell. Don
groaned and at the end of the game the New York team had lost to the Dallas
Stars in a rather spectacular fashion. Don simply shook his head while Nick
grinned.
“Don’t even start.” Nick’s grin widened, but he obeyed and remained
silent. Don growled and went to check on the food with a muttered curse.
“Bloody Texan.”
“I heard that, you know.” Nick was leaning against the kitchen door and
mirth sparkled in his eyes. Don sighed and shrugged. “We’ll beat you in the
playoffs.”
Nick who had grabbed plates and cutlery and started setting the table
laughed surprised. “Which playoffs?”
---
Danny felt Mac’s arms around him, felt his partner’s strong body
against his own and he sighed content. He was exhausted and tired, but at the
same time it was as if pure love and happiness was running through his veins
and with another sigh, he turned his head to find Mac watching him with loving
eyes.
“You ok?” Danny smiled at Mac’s question and reached out to caress
Mac’s face gently. “Never been better.”
It was an honest statement, because Danny really had never felt like
this. Mac had made love to him all night and in all variations proving Danny
again and again that he was Mac’s. Danny smiled again and pulled Mac towards
him for a kiss.
“You know I never knew I could feel like this for anyone.” Not this
intense, Danny thought, not this much without being scared about the
consequences. Rationally he should be scared, because Mac meant so much to him,
but Mac had shown him tonight that this was no one way street.
“I love you, Mac.” Danny felt how Mac’s breath stopped for a moment at
his silently spoken words and he smiled. “You are my one.”
---
*Washington DC*
Gibbs hated the nights he spent alone in his house. He knew that they couldn’t
be together all the time, knew that it was necessary for their safety to be
apart and spend time at their houses, but while he rationally understood all
that, he still hated it with a passion. He had never really realized how silent
his house was when Tony wasn’t in it, but now that it had been filled with his
partner’s laughter and presence, the silence was deafening.
Sighing he turned on the TV only to see yet another Christmas
commercial and he growled. He wasn’t a Christmas person, had spent most of the
holidays in the office since Shannon and Kelly had been killed. The thought
gave him pause and with a start he realized that he didn’t want to work this
year. Instead he wanted to spend the time with Tony, wanted to shower him with
the love he felt and really have time for him.
He would have to ask Tony about his schedule for the holidays and he
had to find a gift for his lover. Surprised at the unusual thoughts, Gibbs
turned the TV off and sat down on his couch. What could he possibly give Tony?
For a moment, Gibbs sighed, he had never been good in figuring out gifts, his
ex-wives had usually complained about a gift missing either emotional or
material value. He didn’t want to disappoint Tony, wanted to give him something
that showed how much Gibbs cared for him.
“Jethro?” Tony’s voice came from the corridor and Gibbs smiled as the
house felt brighter with his lover in it.
“Living room.” At Gibbs’ answer Tony walked into the room and plopped
down next to Gibbs. Gibbs looked at his lover and saw the tiredness around the
eyes, saw the exhaustion and felt tenderness rise in him. Gently he reached out
and caressed Tony’s face. “Glad you came
over.”
Tony leaned against the caress and Gibbs pulled him slowly towards his
body. He sighed when Tony rested against him and continued the gentle caresses
while he watched the expressive face of his lover. “What’s wrong?”
Gibbs knew that something was bothering Tony, that something had been
bothering Tony for the entire day now, but they hadn’t had a quiet minute to
talk and so he wanted to the truth now. “Ziva knows.”
“I know.” Gibbs felt Tony tense against him and held Tony tighter.
“Listen to me, Tony, she won’t tell. I talked to her and I know she talked to
Nick as well. She’s not homophobic and she considers you her friend.”
The body in his arms was still tense and Gibbs sighed. “She won’t hurt
us, Tony, I promise.”
A shudder went through Tony before he relaxed. “I’m just afraid of
losing you.”
Gibbs heard the fear in Tony’s voice and his heart ached with love.
Gently he picked Tony’s hand and kissed his wrist. “You won’t lose me.”
Tony shuddered from a completely different emotion and Gibbs saw how
his partner’s eyes darkened with arousal. Suddenly an idea for a gift popped in
his head and he smiled before he leaned down and kissed the slender wrist
again. “I’d cuff you to me, before I lose you.”
This time Tony laughed and looking up, Gibbs saw Tony’s eyes sparkle
with mirth. “I’d love to see you try.”
The slight challenge in the words woke Gibbs’ competitive instincts and
he smiled darkly as he remembered a talk he’d had with Mac not too long ago.
They had somehow touched the topic of their lovers and how the two younger men
had a tendency of getting into trouble. Mac had laughed and told him that he
simply tied Danny to the bed, if he got himself in too much trouble. Gibbs had
laughed but something in Mac’s tone had intrigued him and after another ten
minutes of conversation Gibbs had finally found the courage to ask.
“Mac, you and Danny... are
you playing with it?” Mac had chuckled darkly, but hadn’t let Gibbs off the
hook. “Playing with what?” Gibbs had groaned and sighed. “Dominance and you
know...”
Again Mac had laughed, but
then he had become serious as he had continued. “We don’t play, Jethro, because
it’s more for both of us. We both need the release those scenes give us. I need
to know that Danny is mine and ready to submit to me and Danny needs to know
that he belongs to me.”
Ever since that talk, Gibbs had thought about it, had thought about
Tony and himself, but he hadn’t brought it up not because he was afraid of
Tony’s reaction, but because he wasn’t sure what he wanted. Sure the possessive
part of his soul wanted Tony to submit but there was another part in him that
wanted to submit to Tony and that confused Gibbs more than he wanted. So until
he had figured it out, he would remain silent about his wishes and desires.
“Jethro?” Tony’s eyes had changed and his partner looked concerned.
“You still with me?”
Recovering immediately, Jethro smiled at Tony. “Yeah, I was just
thinking that a nice hot shower would be great.”
Tony purred at the thought and got up. “Great idea, love, do you mind
if I join you?”
---
*New York*
Stella smiled at Frankie when he walked into the living room with two
red wine glasses. “Just what I need after today.”
He looked at her concerned and she could see how he tried to gauge her
mood. The fact that he knew her that well to be able to tell whether or not a
case had rattled her, made her smile and gave her a feeling of comfort. It was
nice to have a partner who knew her so well, someone who accepted who she was
and what she did. “Do you want to talk about it?”
She leaned against him and shook her head. “Not really, no. It’s just
not a nice case.”
Frankie sighed and pulled her closer. “I checked the name you gave me.
No one in the artist scene has ever heard it. So it’s either pseudonym or a
really unknown artist.”
Stella nodded. “I almost guessed so, it’s a weird name, you know. If it
had been a known artist, I would have remembered. Thanks to you, I’m getting
quite savvy in New York’s art scene.”
He smiled, but didn’t comment on the fact that she had already been in
the scene before she had met him, it was how they had gotten together after
all. Stella sighed and reached for her wine glass. “I hate cases like this, you
know? They just make me feel vulnerable.”
Frankie’s arms around her tightened and she noted once more the strength
of the muscles as she let him support her weight. “You’re safe with me, Stella,
you’re safe here. No one will harm you as long as you’re with me.”
She smiled and wanted to tell him, that she didn’t need a knight in
shining armor. But she remained silent, because right now on this evening, she
did need one.
---