hunted

"Thanks for coming with me, Kens." KC said, carrying Alina in her pouch as they walked along the store. "I know this isn't something you're interested in. I feel like a bride, picking out my wedding pattern, if they still do that sort of thing..." She said, meaning the list of things they were trying to pick out for the new restaurant.

"Spend time with my favourite friend and my gorgeous niece? Or stay home by myself and be bored. I can get over the interest part."

"I just want everything to be perfect." Before she got the idea, she would have said it interested her not in the least, but it was something that she could do that was safe, that she could spend time with her daughter, with Kensi and the others when they weren't working.

"I understand. So what's next?"

"I think that's it here. I want to go to the grocery store, then we can go home. I'll make dinner for us and the boys and then we can watch a movie, unless you've got something you want to do."

"I actually need to stop by the doctor. I have an appointment in a couple of hours."

"Honey, why didn't you tell me? Is everything okay?" She'd wondered why Kensi had been off without Deeks, but just chalked it up to one of Hetty's sick jokes with the scheduling.

"I'm okay. Just a check up." Kensi smiled. "You can come if you want. I can't have Deeks, so I would like someone to come."

"I can't believe she wouldn't let Deeks off." She rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"What do you expect? She's pissed at us."

"Yeah, well, she's a b..." She looked down at her daughter. "Witch."

"Agreed. So, you gonna come?"

"Of course."

"Thank you."

"Always." She turned and saw someone who looked familiar. She called on her 'gray man' past to keep her pulse under control, color in her face. "Maybe we should go ahead and go. I still want to get the guys something for supper. What do you think you can eat?"

"I don't mind. Whatever you want."

"I don't want to cook anything that'll make you sick. I remember those days, not being able to keep anything down."

"Trust me when I say that I'm eating pretty much anything now. It's wierd."

"You may have moved on to the next part. Eating anything that's not nailed down."

She smiled for her friend, but it was disconcerting as the man continued to stare at them.

"Right, and when does that stop?"

"I don't know. I never got to that point. I was pretty much sick the whole way through. It's different for everyone. Right now, my nephew's telling you he's going to have his mommy's appetite, and his daddy's." She smiled.

"Nephew? How do you know it's a boy?"

She thought of herself and of Kensi. "True." She paid for what they'd bought, anxious to leave.

"Doctor's now and then home. You don't have to come if you don't want."

"Of course I want to come." She tried to shake off the feeling that pressed down on her.

"Alright, let's go." Kensi led her friend to the doctor's office.

Although she knew well where Kensi's doctor's office was, she took the long way, checking the mirror. When they arrived, Kensi was out of the car and walking to the door before KC had even gotten out. KC had to get her out and then Alina out. She saw what she thought was the car that had been following her since the shop, parked, watching.

Kensi turned from the door, smiling. "Come on KC!"

She nodded, walking in with her, still quiet

"Is something wrong KC?"

"No, of course not. Why?"

"You seem really quiet all of a sudden."

"I'm sorry. Just thinking." She tried to smile, although she didn't feel it.

"Okay." The doctor called Kensi in. "Come on, let's go."

She walked in with Kensi, standing by the window, watching.
***************
KC grew quiet again, choosing to eat at Callen's house. She let Kensi watch Alina as she took the steaks and vegetables out to the grill. Kensi knew something was wrong, but she wasn't getting through to her friend. As soon as the boys arrived, she was going to tell them, and hope they would get through to her. Callen and Deeks came in together, talking, and Deeks kissed Kensi's hair, picking up Alina when she held her arms out to him.

"How'd it go?" He asked, always worried when he couldn't be there for an appointment, which was more often than not, thanks to Hetty.

"Good. KC came with me. The doctor said I'm doing fine. So is our little one. Callen, something's wrong with KC, can you talk to her?"

"Sure." He walked off to find his girlfriend.

"What do you mean something's wrong with KC?" Deeks asked, sitting down with Kensi. "Is she hurt? Did something happen?"

"She's acting all weird. Something happened, but I don't know what."

"Okay, babe. I'm sure Callen will take care of it." He wrapped his arms around her.

"The doctor said that we can find out what we're having at my next appointment."

"Great." He kissed her temple.

"Do you want to know?"

"Of course."

"Can you come with me?"

"I'll try, babe. I promise I'll try."

"I know. I wish she would just be nice."
*********************
KC jumped when she heard someone in the yard, something that wasn't like her, at all.

Callen immediately knew Kensi was right. "KC, honey, it's just me. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Sorry. I guess...I just startled." She chewed on her bottom lip. "G?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm not okay."

"What's going on? Kensi said she was worried about you."

"I thought...I thought I saw someone today. It's not possible though. He's dead. I had...I had to be seeing things. Had to be imagining."

"Who is he?"

"It can't be him. Because if it's him, I can't tell Kensi. I don't want her hurt. I don't want the baby hurt. Ali either." She ran a hand through her long hair, tears threatening to fall.

Callen wrapped her in a hug. "Deeks and I can fix this. But you have to tell me who it is. I need to know what happened."

"I can't tell you. I just...I can't." She held on to him.

"Sweetie, you have to."

"Promise you won't hate me. Promise...Promise you won't leave."

"I'm not going anywhere."

She nodded. "We need Deeks. I'm only saying it once."

"Alright. Should I get Kensi too?"

"It won't matter. You pull Deeks out, baby or not, she'll be right there, wanting to know what's going on."

"Alright. Why don't we go inside then?"

"Let me...Let me finish things out here." She doubted anyone would be hungry that night, even Kensi, but she made sure the fire was out and brought the food inside.

Deeks was already waiting when she came in, an arm around Kensi. Ali was playing in her play pen near Deeks' feet. She watched as the two balls of fur that she and Ali had gotten for Christmas surrounded her little girl, letting her do just about anything she wanted to them, and almost smiled. She was trembling, even as she held Callen's hand.

Kensi spoke first. "KC, what's going on?"

"I thought I saw someone today. Someone we haven't seen in sixteen years. Someone who was supposed to be dead. I swear, I know it wasn't him, but he looked...God, he looked just like him."

Kensi paled. "No. No. It definitely isn't him. I watched him die KC, he's gone. Right?"

"He has to be. But I would have sworn it was him. I saw him at the shop, then again at the doctor's office."

"He followed us?" Kensi started to feel sick.

She nodded. "Kens, I'm sorry. I should have told you. I...I was scared. Scared of what it would do to you, and to the baby."

"To the baby? What the hell is going on here?" Deeks asked gently, holding his partner protectively.

"He tried to kill us when we were younger. He was going for KC, and I stabbed him to stop him." Tears welled in her eyes. "I didn't mean to hurt anyone, but I couldn't let him hurt my best friend either."

"Oh, baby." Deeks held her, running his hand through her long hair, kissing it gently. He knew the pain of having something like that happen, only in his case it had been his father.

"You did what you had to do, Kens. It was my fault. I never...I never should have put you in that position. If I hadn't...If I hadn't...Then he wouldn't have..." She was trying not to break down and failing miserably.

"Don't you dare blame yourself! You are my best friend, I would never leave you alone to get hurt."

"You told me, Kens. You told me when I started that it was stupid, that anything could happen. But I thought maybe it would get us enough that we could get off the streets. Somewhere safe."

"And we did get to safety, you never had to do it."

"The trial alerted Gibbs and he remembered my dad. If it hadn't, what would have happened?"

"We wouldn't have gotten in trouble... Okay, maybe we would have, but we were sixteen and defending ourselves."

"No. I was being an idiot." Her stomach hurt and she felt like she was going to throw up as she thought of how silent Callen had become.

"No. You tried to help us. It's not your fault."

Callen finally shook off his shock. He wrapped KC tighter in his arms and kissed her. "It's okay. Deeks and I will deal with this alright? We'll call Gibbs in to stay with the two of you and keep you safe."

She moved in closer, her head against his chest, trying to compose herself. "Don't call Gibbs. Not yet. If I'm imagining things, I don't want him to have to leave Jenny and his own cases for nothing. Maybe...Maybe it was just time the past caught up with me."

"No, I think we need Gibbs. There's a little girl here that needs protection just as much as us. He'll keep her safe."

She nodded, unable to refuse Ali anything.

"Thank you."

The Rottweiler outside started barking, causing the puppies to bark as well.

Callen pulled his phone out as he and Deeks went to check on what had caused the dogs to start. Deeks knew the Rottweiler's history as a former service dog. He knew that dog would not bark, much less growl, if he didn't feel his owner was being threatened. Sure enough, there was a car across from the house, the window down, a man inside watching.

"Deeks, we need to get the girls someplace safe," whispered Callen.

"KC's?" It was in a private, gated community on land, a lot safer to his way of thinking than Kensi's in the city.

"Or safehouse or boatshed."

"Boatshed for now. That way we can check the other places."

He nodded, going back to the girls. "Okay, Kens, can you pack for Ali? KC, you pack for you girls. I'll get the dogs and Ali to a vehicle." He knew she wasn't leaving without the puppies and wouldn't like leaving the Rottweiler.

"Where are we going?" asked Kensi as she moved around the room, picking up toys and clothes for Ali.

"Boatshed for now."

"They were out there, weren't they?"

"Yeah, babe. They were."

"Please be careful if you go after them."

"I will, sweetheart. But we need to get you three safe right now."

"You will get Gibbs, right?"

"Of course."

"Thank you." Kensi took a breath. 'Do you think you can get my doctor too?"

"Are you okay? The baby?" He asked, scared.