United Under Fire

Another Day

It had been months since Jace had started his search for Ziva, and he felt like he had been going in circles. He had tracked his leads to Ziva's childhood home, places she grew up, only to find mysterious sightings that he couldn't confirm. His final place to check out was the house Ziva was born in. He needed new leads, if he didn't JSOC would call him back to the States.

Julian walked through the streets, everywhere he looked he saw Ziva. He saw her sitting at a cafe, he saw her walking a dog, he saw her reading a book on a bench. He was drowning in the thought of Ziva.

He reached the house, and with every step he took, the pressure in his chest rose. Once he finally got to the front door he knocked twice, Jace tried to steady his breathing.

The door opened.

Suddenly everything felt lighter and he felt like his skin was on fire.

It was her.

Ziva.

In a flash, she embraced him tightly. When she faced him her eyes were riddled with love, joy, and regret.

"How did you find me?"

"You spent so much time looking for me when I needed help," replied Julian. "Did you expect me not to return the favor?"

"You should come inside," said Ziva, gently. "There's something we need to talk about."

She told him about her journey after her run-in with Deena Bashar, how she tried to find answers to questions that she didn't realize she had been asking herself until now.

"I am the problem, Jules," she said with absolute certainty. "I am the reason for so much death."

"Zee, you've protected people your entire career," Jace told her. "You've hunted down the worst there is as a Mossad Officer and as an agent, you've given clarity to the families of victims."

He looked into her eyes, cradling her face.

"You have done so much good, you've taken on a weight that few understand," Julian was desperate to convince her that she was not the villain in her story. "You are not what Bashar said you are."

"How can you tell?" asked Ziva, her eyes glossing over.

"If you're a bad guy, then what am I?"

Ziva looked away from Jace, she had let it slip her mind that in many ways their lives mirrored each other.

"Jules, how do I go on with everything that has happened?" asked the Israeli woman. "In my pursuit of justice, I jeopardized my entire team."

"You were forced into a corner."

They sat down together, he held her tightly as if she were about to drift away into a void. He took out her Will.

"You decide how your story goes, no one else."

. . .

He watched as Ziva buried the box containing her Will, and they walked back to the house. Jace could tell that she had something to tell him; he had something he wanted to ask her.

"A part of my new path is that 'I will let go of the badge'," said Ziva.

"You don't have to be an agent anymore if you don't want to," replied Jace.

"Julian, I need to do this. Your father would want me to."

Stop this for him.

It made sense Julian and his father had struggled to find the same peace themselves. He had been searching since the loss of his mother and sister, and since Kathleen died. Now Ziva was committing to a new search and to do so she needed to leave NCIS behind.

He had to let her go.

"I'm sorry."

"You have been and are one of the greatest loves in my life," said Julian. "Don't ever be sorry."

They embraced, holding each other as if they would break. He wanted to say so many things but if he said any more he'd never be able to let her leave.

. . .

Jace had just finished briefing Commanders Rorke and Webb, along with Captain Dawes. He was making his way to the Navy Yard, he wanted to tell the others in person. Once he cleared security he called his father, telling him that he was on his way. He saw the others waiting for him in the squad room

He didn't return their greetings, Tony and his father followed him to the conference room. The older Gibbs locked the door. They sat down.

"She's not coming back is she?" asked Tony, already knowing the answer.

"She's finding her peace," stated Jace. "And she has every right to do so."

"I'm happy for her," said Gibbs. "We all should be."

Jace couldn't take the weight, it was too personal, too close to home. He had to talk to someone about it.

He took out a small velvet box and placed it on the table. His father opened it, an engagement ring was inside. It was a silver ring with gold lining surrounding the diamond and writing in Hebrew inside.

"I couldn't bring myself to ask her," said Jace. "I couldn't tie her here."

"You loved her enough to let her go," said Gibbs.

Tony knew what Jace was feeling, he made a similar choice with the very same woman.

"You wanted what was best for Ziva," said Tony. "There's nothing wrong with that."

They got up, Tony left to tell the others of Ziva's choice, Gibbs went home, and Jace stopped at Ziva's old apartment. He stared at the door, remembering how he finally told her that he wanted to be with her. He smiled, he was grateful to have met Ziva, to have her as a friend, and most of all he was grateful to have loved her and that she reciprocated that love. He still loved her, which was why he had to let her go.

He went home and found his daughters asleep on the sofa. He had a week of leave coming up, he would tell them during a trip he had planned. They already knew that his and Ziva's relationship had turned into a long-distance one, and he wanted to break the news of their separation to them gently.

He wished the best for Ziva and that she wouldn't let the words of a bitter former friend get the best of her.