Chapter 2
Ziva looked around before quietly sneaking into the shower room. She knew that the showers were for bio-hazards only, but for once she didn't care. She needed to wash the dream from her thoughts, literally. She grabbed up a towel and moved towards one of the middle stalls. She checked she wasn't followed again before quickly stripping. She knew she had no reason to be self conscious, but she would have much preferred if they had curtains. She bundled her clothes into a corner and stepped into a cubicle. She turned on the water and waited a while for it to go hot, although she could have used a cold one. She stepped under the running shower and tried to let her troubles flow away with the water. She closed her eyes, letting the water run all over her body. Tali's voice echoed in her head. It screamed her name over and over again in a fear stricken voice. Ziva just wanted to scream and run. The explosion rang in her head. The water felt like the blood that had run down her face. Her thoughts were broken when she heard slow footsteps approaching. She could tell they were male, so her first thought was to grab a towel, or gun. Her time ran out. She saw the shiny black shoe under the stall gap. A man's body appeared in the corner of her eye. It was Tony. "Ziva, I…" he stuttered. This was the first time Ziva had ever seen Tony nervous. He knew he should put a hand over his eyes, but he never got around to it. He was too shocked by what he thought he would never see again after that weekend undercover. Ziva was pressed up against the back of the cubicle. A wall of water separated the two of them, but Tony could still see pretty well. Water dripped from every point of Ziva's body that he could see. Her dark hair was longer when wet, and a few strands fell onto her face.
"Tony!" she yelled, but he took no notice. "DiNozzo"
"Yeah…" he said, a dazed look on his face.
"Either leave or join me, but stop staring." She said, walking into the stream of water. Tony weighed his options. He started to undo his tie and he stepped towards her. "Not a chance" she said, laying a hand on his chest. "Leave now Tony"
"But you said…" he pouted.
"I was pulling your arm"
"That's leg Ziva, and that's mean"
"Yeah" she said, taking a handful of water and throwing it on him. "Bye Tony" she said, waving. He waved sarcastically back.
Ziva entered the bullpen to find Tony, head down at his desk. Her hair was still wet, but only slightly dripping. "Tony, get up. We're going" she said, slipping her gun onto her waistband and grabbing the keys to the sedan as he stood up and followed her to the elevator.
"I'm driving" he told her.
"No you're not Tony" she said as the doors slid shut.
Ziva sped round the corner to the crime scene. "Ziva!" Tony yelled, clutching the dashboard for dear life.
"What!" she said, speeding to a stop beside the NCIS truck.
"Never mind" he said, practically rolling out of the car. They both pulled their hats onto their heads and ducked under the yellow tape.
"Hey boss" Tony said, jogging down the hill, Ziva on his six.
"DiNozzo. ‘bout time, shoot" he said, throwing the camera to Tony. They looked past Gibbs to see the wreck of what once could be called a car. Tony could see the remains of a tall man lying next to Ducky and Palmer. "Ziva, interview the passenger"
"Passenger?" she said, turning round to face Gibbs.
"Yeah. Guy was also in the car. Passenger seat. He is in the back of the ambulance. Interview him" he said, going back to bagging and tagging. Ziva turned back and walked up the hill, heading over to an ambulance which sat stationary 20 feet from the crime scene tape. She rounded the corner to see a paramedic working on a head injury that was sustained by a man with sandy blond hair.
"Shit!" Ziva swore, pressing up against the back of the autopsy van before the man saw her. She slid out of site and back under the tape before anyone noticed. Gibbs was talking with Ducky and McGee was away in his own little world. Tony on the other hand was half way up the hill, snapping some of the car that had torn away. "Tony" she whispered, trying to get his attention. He didn't look round. "Tony" she said a little louder, grasping his focus this time.
"What?" he said, moving closer to her.
"Swap?" she begged.
"Excuse me?" he said, confused.
"Please interview the witness and let me take photos. Please?"
"What's in it for me?" he said, ducking under the tape and moving extremely close to her, staring longingly into the dark eyes.
"Anything you want" she said seductively, moving forward so her body was pressed up against his, lips only inches from his.
"Anything" he said, thinking
"As long as you talk to him" she said, taking a step back and winking before grabbing the camera from his hand and sliding from his view. Tony made his way to the ambulance and saw the man; he was about 6'1" with sandy blond hair. He was quite muscular but thin as well. Tony took out his PDA and moved towards the man.
10 minutes later Tony was back with the rest of the group at the scene of the crash. His PDA was still in hand as he slowly ran down the hill. "The Vic's name is Kenneth Sandler. The passenger is Billy Lyon. He's the Vic's best friend; they were in boot camp together. Lyon got a medical discharge last year. He is in town for the weekend, visiting Sandler. Said he hooked up with a girl last night, but she kicked him out in the morning. He got Sandler to pick him up, that's why they were driving this way" he said, looking hopefully at Gibbs for a reward.
"Good job DiNozzo" Gibbs said, walking behind Tony and back up to the van. Ducky and Palmer followed with the body on a gurney. McGee also did, carrying all the gear under his arms. Tony grabbed Ziva's arm as she passed. The guilty look that had possessed her face only a second ago had disappeared. She feared it would reappear when she saw the look on Tony's face. She knew she was busted. "Ziva, I think I will take you up on the deal now" he said, a sly grin on his face. She wasn't caught out after all.
"You saw me in the shower this morning, there's you payment" she said, winking seductively at him, giving him a small kiss on the lips and following Gibbs to the truck.
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