They found themselves arriving at NCIS early the next morning. Ziva was eager to find out how much information Gibbs had been able to extract from the suspects. She had a feeling it would be very little. This wasn't the first time Ziva had confronted Hamas members; they were ruthless and not easily intimidated.
As they rode the elevator up to the bullpen, Tony could sense the tension radiating off of Ziva's body. He reached down and gave her hand a brief squeeze.
"We'll get them." He said quietly.
"I know." Ziva replied with a smile, appreciating the words as well as the gesture. She leaned toward him and placed a kiss upon his lips.
The soft ding of the elevator alerted them that they had reached their destination. They separated and stepped off the elevator onto the bullpen floor.
It was almost like a coming home for Ziva. Had it only been 3 days since she had last been here? It seemed so long ago in retrospect.
She hadn't made it far before she heard the jingle of metal and was caught up in a flurry of arms and pigtails; extensions of the whirlwind known as Abby.
Abby hugged Ziva so tight she winced.
"Ziva! I'm so sorry I said you didn't care about Gibbs and slapped you. I know you do, really. Care about Gibbs, I mean. I was just so worried, and I was wrong and Gibbs told us what you did, about you killing Ari to save him, and I'm so sorry and please don't quit. I'm so glad you're ok, what happened at your apartment? Tony and McGee found blood and I know it wasn't yours because I tested it, but I was so scared it was going to be yours and you might be hurt or worse and I treated you so bad and I'm just sorry, do you forgive me?" This was all said on one breath and when Abby finally stopped she had to take a gulp of air.
Ziva was silent for a moment. She was still processing everything Abby had just said. Finally, she laughed and replied, "How about we both admit we were wrong and leave it at that?"
The apprehensive look disappeared from Abby's face and a huge grin took its place. "Sounds like a plan, man."
"Agreed," Ziva replied before looking around the bullpen. "Where's Gibbs?" She questioned.
"He's interrogating the suspects we caught last night." McGee replied. He had made his to the bullpen to meet Tony and Ziva after Tony called to tell him they were on the way to NCIS.
"Have they said anything?" Ziva questioned.
"Not yet, he just got started, though. We left them in lock up overnight to stew. They're in separate rooms. We're hoping we'll get more out of them that way." McGee supplied.
"Let's go." Ziva ordered already striding towards the elevator. Tony and McGee hurried behind her while Abby made her way back to her lab.
"Did you get their names?" Tony asked McGee.
"Yes. Gibbs is with Ahmad Hassan and the other one is Shadhan al Mansur." He answered.
"Ziva, you know you can't go in there. If you do, any information we get will be inadmissible in court." McGee warned Ziva as they walked down the hall towards the interrogation rooms.
"I assure you, McGee, I know. I just want to watch." Said Ziva as she entered the observation room to watch Gibbs.
McGee didn't look convinced. He was apprehensive about leaving Ziva alone in the viewing room while he went to keep an eye on the other suspect. He shot Tony a questioning glance.
"Don't worry, Probie. I'll be here with her. Go on and get back to the other guy before Gibbs finds out you're not watching him." Tony assured him.
With that McGee left the viewing room, leaving Tony and Ziva to observe Gibbs and the suspect.
Gibbs glared at the man across the table who seemed unaffected and slumped in a relaxed position in his chair.
"I'm going to give you one more chance; tell me where the others are and what they have planned." He growled menacingly.
This brought a laugh from the other man. "One last chance or what? You can't do anything to me. I know your laws; they protect me. You silly Americans treat your criminals better than you do victims or the public." He taunted.
This infuriated Gibbs even more. He slammed his fists on the table and got right in the suspect's face. "My silly American laws might protect others, but not you. You screwed up; you threatened one of my team members. I don't give a damn what the law says, nobody threatens my people!"
The man's smile seemed to have dimmed a bit, but he still appeared casual and unaffected by the situation.
Gibbs looked meaningfully towards the two-way mirror. He knew Tony and Ziva would be behind it. McGee had informed him they would be arriving soon.
"I'm going for coffee." He said. Then he walked out of the room, ‘accidentally' hitting the button by the door that controlled the recording equipment, switching it off.
Ziva smiled. She understood perfectly. She gave Gibbs time to get on the elevator before she exited the room, so if questioned, he could say in all honesty that he had never seen Ziva. But, if things went well, there would be no questions.
Tony watched as Ziva entered the interrogation room. He knew she could take care of herself just fine, but he wasn't going to let his guard down. These people wanted Ziva dead and would go to any means to see that she ended up that way.
"Hello, Ahmad." She said.
"Stupid, Bitch." He spat out.
Ziva, who had been walking by Ahmad's chair, turned abruptly and before Tony could blink, had slammed the man's face into the table.
"That wasn't very nice. Let's try again. Hello, Ahmad." She repeated the greeting.
"Bitch," he said again.
Ziva pressed his face into the table a bit harder. He howled in pain.
"What are you doing? You can't treat me like this! It's against the law. You'll go to jail." Ahmad's words were muffled as Ziva's hand kept his face pressed against the tabletop.
"That's where you're wrong. I'm not an agent. I'm a liaison for Mossad. I don't follow American laws." She spoke menacingly near his ear.
Ziva allowed him to sit up and then went around to the other side of the table to take the seat facing him.
She sat quietly for a moment allowing him to gaze into her eyes and see the intensity there.
When she started to speak again, it was in another language which Tony assumed was Arabic and he could no longer understand what she was saying, but he could tell by the sight of the color draining from Ahmad's face that he was getting nervous. He could also pretty well understand what was being said when she pulled her gun out and pressed it against Ahmad's forehead, between his eyes. The hard façade was gone and his fear was showing now.
Ahmad began to speak in the same language Ziva had used and nod his head. After a few minutes, Ziva replaced her gun in her holster and stood up. She walked around the table towards the door. Before she reached it, she placed her hand on Ahmad's shoulder giving it a not so gentle squeeze. She leaned down and whispered in his ear.
"Don't forget. I'll be watching." And with that she exited the room.
Ziva re-entered the screening room to find Tony on the phone.
"Boss, you're good. You can come back now." He said and then disconnected the call.
Ziva stood with a grin on her face. Tony studied her.
"You really enjoyed that, didn't you?" He asked her.
"Well, of course, Tony. Interrogation has always been a specialty of mine." She said with a glint in her eye.
Tony laughed. They turned back to the interview room as Gibbs stepped in, a fresh cup of coffee in his hand.
He sat down at the table and spoke.
"OK, Ahmad. Let's try this again." He glanced towards the recording equipment in the corner of the room and feigned surprise that the red light which indicated it was turned on, wasn't blinking.
"Hang on. The camera isn't turned on. Hmm, wonder how that happened? I guess I knocked the switch when I walked out." He turned the camera back on and then returned to his seat, flashing a small smile towards Ahmad.
"So, have you thought more about what we discussed before? Are you ready to talk now that you've had some time to think, reconsider your options?" Gibbs asked.
Ahmad shot a glance towards the two-way mirror before replying. "Yes."
"Alright, start talking. Start at the beginning." Gibbs ordered.
Ahmad began to tell the tale about how Hamas had discovered that Ziva had killed Ari and had decided to seek revenge; Ari had been the leader of their cell. He explained that himself and another member where the ones who ransacked Ziva's apartment in a surprise attack.
"We snuck in and I crept up behind her. I tried to grab her, but that stupid bitch pulled out a knife and stabbed me." With Ziva gone from the room, he was feeling a bit braver.
"You're lucky she didn't castrate you," Gibbs retorted.
Ahmad winced and continued with his story.
Half an hour later they had the information they needed and Gibbs planned to turn over Ahmad and his buddy Shadhan to the U.S. Attorney General for suspicion of terrorism. Even without evidence, just based on suspicion, the Attorney General could hold them indefinitely if he pleased, in accordance with the U.S. Patriot Act.
The team met up in the squad room after the suspects had been returned to lock up, where they would wait to be transported.
"Alright everyone," Gibbs began. "We now know where they're hiding and what they have planned. This is what we are going to do…"
TBC…
Chapter End Notes:
Alright, interrogation time. Should be fun, don’t you think?