Bound by Blood, Forged in Fire

Predators

Jace had just gotten off the phone with Patterson, he got to the Major before the Chaplain. He knew what he was going through, he remembered the day the GTNE attacked Norfolk. The memory of Kathleen running towards him before being hit by one of the IEDs. The 'stand-down' order had just been lifted, JSOC was having a team of Deltas and the rest of Echo-Team arrive in two weeks, possibly three. SOCOM wanted justice and the CIA wanted answers.

However, that would have to wait, the US embassy was moving essential personnel to a diplomatic outpost. This meant no Marine Guards, no barricades, none of the security features of a full-time embassy. While the DSS was focusing on security NCIS was going to investigate the attack. November-Team and the CIA SAC operators were going to be on-call for any emergencies requiring their expertise since the Diplomatic Outpost was within QRF vicinity from the CIA Annex. Once the other teams got there they were on their way home, November would relay their findings to Echo and the Deltas and that would be the end of their mission.

They were on their way to secure the embassy during the evacuation and secure the outpost. Once they were there they met with the NCIS agents and to add to the pleasantries Senior Chief Lydia Brooke had arrived with them, he was glad to see his father and Ziva but he also wished they weren't there. Lebanon was unstable, especially dangerous for Americans; he knew that they felt the same about him being there.

"So how much longer will you be here?" asked Ziva, walking next to him, her M4 slung over her shoulders.

"Two weeks, maybe three," answered Jace. "Zee, did you see the Patterson's before you left?"

"Yes, your father and I paid them a visit before we left," replied the Israeli woman. "It's such a shame, they just had a baby."

Jace only nodded. "I'm sorry about Ray."

"He wasn't who I thought he was, I understand that his job was brutal and covert but. . ." She just trailed off.

Jace simply put a hand on her shoulder, a Gibbs family trademark gesture of comfort.

At the bombing scene, the agents went over the security of the building with the DSS and the SEALs went with the transport of the remaining State personnel to the Diplomatic Outpost. The drive itself was uneventful, which Jace took as neither a good nor bad sign, the outpost on the other hand concerned him. It was a gated compound that looked more like a tropical vacation residence than a secured US government stronghold. While the gates were fortified it left plenty of exposure for a sharpshooter, there were security contractors at every corner, but not enough to hold up against more than a dozen hostiles. They went over the grounds, the building had steel bars that would do much against a coordinated attack. The TOC and safe haven were also matters of concern, the security cameras had no blind spots, and the armory only had several M4s, MP5s, and small arms.

None of this would fair against a coordinated attack.

. . .

The team deduced that the bombing was the result of a car rigged to explode fifteen minutes after it was turned on. Brooke noticed that the bomb was built into the engine, but the vehicle had been in the embassy for four months and none of the security measures picked it up. This meant that the engine was retrofitted to function as a bomb. The IED was activated via remote, which started the timer.

Ziva looked at the gate, what was left of the Marine Guard was helping maintain security. The rest was helping evacuate State personnel, the ambassador was thirty minutes away at a diplomatic outpost five miles away from the CIA Annex. They were going to be based there during their investigation. This wasn't ideal for either of them, intel suggested that insurgents were coming in from Syria intending to enact multiple mass casualty events. However, there was nothing to suggest when or how they were going to conduct this act therefore there was nothing concrete to authorize a full evacuation.

Gibbs and Amato were coordinating the security of any vital materials left behind, whether by retrieving them or destroying them.

"In all my years with the State Department I've never had to do anything like this," said Raya.

"I don't think anything like this has happened since Mogadishu," replied the senior agent. "Maybe not since Vietnam."

They continued to go over all the materials they found while McGee helped erase the computer data. DiNozzo was helping the DSS supervise the escort of nonessential personnel to a safe zone.

Ziva volunteered to go with Brooke to search for any more hazards, this was likely since the remaining Marines and DSS agents had dogs with them and Tony and McGee were still 'allergic'.

"How do you think Jace's team is doing?" asked Ziva. "Has he told you anything?"

"Nope, I'm not assigned to his team so I'm not in the loop."

Ziva sighed. "They should have called off the mission, if there is an attack they could be in serious trouble."

"They're JSOCs now, which means higher risks besides being a Doorkicker means adapting and overcoming."

"Who am I kidding, Jace would rather sit on a live grenade than retreat," said Ziva, both women laughed at this.

. . .

Back at the Annex, the team was going over their target package, they found the bomb maker responsible for making the IED and suicide vests responsible for both attacks. They were going to grab him at his apartment, he lived alone with no family at all, the building was abandoned, and had no security whatsoever. One element was going in through the fire escape while the second was going inside through the lobby. Grey and Rider were joining the ground team, and Jace and Petty Officer Dodd were going to set up overwatch at the neighboring building. The team's second-in-command, Chief Rhodes was leading the breaching team and Petty Officer Beck was leading the ground team.

The Ground Branch Taskforce was going to provide QRF support, ISR would be available the entire time. However, it wasn't the body snatch itself that worried everyone; recent chatter suggests an upcoming, massive, terror attack. This one was said to be coordinated and well-armed, but there was nothing that pointed out who was behind it, when it was happening, or how it was going to be orchestrated. This wasn't enough to warrant a drawback of any operation or future activities.

The vagueness only made Jace more concerned, as a reconnaissance team, they weren't equipped to fend off a massive attack for very long. There were only eight of them, plus Grey and Rider, & fourteen PMOs. They were going to be spread out all over the city and they weren't ready to repel any large, armed, forces and without the embassy, they couldn't get any more weapons in.

They were already on their way to the target building, there was no turning back.