Haunted by the Past *NCIS Fan Fiction*

Chapter Two

Dr. Hart sat across from me in his office. We currently occupied the two chairs that were placed on opposite sides of his desk. "Why don't you tell me what happened?"

I shifted in the uncomfortable chair beneath me. "I already told you everything before."

"Let's go through it again." He leaned back in his chair, ready for the long story to come. The long story filled with lies. "Start from the beginning..."

A slow breath escaped my lips as I prepared to retell my story. A story I have rehearsed and retold a countless amount of times.

"My brother, Connor, sent me a flash-drive because he thought he wouldn't have time to finish what he started. I didn't check the envelope he had sent me until our shift was over. It wasn't until I opened it that I found it was from Connor, who I had found out was killed the same day. I went home, prepared to share the information regarding my brother's death the next day, but I was attacked in my home before I could do so.

"I had killed one attacker with a knife from the kitchen and hid the mother board from the flash-drive in my locket, just in case. I was attacked again by others in the house. They shot at me, but only grazed my shoulder. I made it out the window and down the fire escape. It didn't take long for them to catch up and attack again. Next thing I know, I'm on the ground having fallen two stories. I threw the locket under the fire escape before I blacked out.

"When I woke up, I was in some room. My attackers wanted the flash-drive, but I wouldn't give it up. Eventually, they decided to try emotional torture by forcing me to tell my team 'Good bye'. There was more to it than that, but I don't remember it all now.

"I managed to get free by breaking my hand and slipping out of the handcuffs that they had me bound by. I killed one more of my attackers and injured or knocked out the others. I nearly stabbed my team as they came around a corner, but I stopped myself.

"And now I'm here in your office."

Dr. Hart looked away from me and up at the clock. Slowly, he stood out of his chair and sat the paper he had been looking over unto the desk between us. "It's getting late, why don't we continue this next time?"

I stood up, trying to hide the aggravation that was building inside of me. "Next time?"

"I don't think you are ready to go into the field yet." Dr. Hart stated as he led me to the office door. "We'll talk in a few days."

*3rd Person POV*

Dr. Hart watched as Alex left and he noted how disappointed she had been with his decision. He turned on his heel and made sure to close his office door.

Two men stood in the center of Dr. Hart's office, their faces a blank slate. Leroy Jethro Gibbs and Leon Vance had been sitting in the back room, usually used for private group sessions, upon Dr. Hart's request. The Doctor had asked them to do this so he could explain the issues he was encountering during the sessions with Alex.

"Did either of you notice something about her explanation regarding the case?" Dr. Hart inquired.

His question was directed to both men, but it was Director Vance who answered. "It was an exact retelling of what she had said before. There were a few variations in her choice of words, but it was precise and clean cut. Not a single stutter or pause to think."

"This is the issue that I am facing. Her response is almost exactly like her original testimony. I don't know if this is because of her military background and need to be exact or something else. With her having been trained in the field she was, she would have been able to relay events, or even falsify events, if need be. It makes it very difficult to get a solid idea on where she is stability wise right now or if she is even telling the truth." Dr. Hart stated.

Gibbs shifted on his feet. "Is there anything else preventing your decision?"

"That's just it. Alex seems fine and unfazed by everything that happened. Normally someone would be emotional or at least a little different. Trauma affects everyone differently, but at the same time... She would not be impartial to what she had to do to survive. She killed two people after all, but she shows nothing. There would be something."

"Everyone grieves differently. Yes, she killed two men, but they were trying to kill her. I am not saying that her reaction to it is correct, but she is only acting how she was trained to. She had to do a lot worse things when she was doing her tours and she couldn't let it affect her. Stuff like that sticks with you. I can tell you now, you never forget the people who are on the other end of your gun. That haunts you forever. It is not what you did, it's how you deal with it." Gibbs crossed his arms, irritated with Charles. He knew he was only doing his job, but he was a desk jockey. He didn't know what it was like to take a life. There are some things that you keep to yourself, and that is one of them.

Vance cleared his throat, trying to diffuse the tension in the room. "So, there is no other reason not to clear her?"

Dr. Hart nodded. "There isn't, but..."

"Will it affect her in the field?" Gibbs interrupted. "I need my agents all working. We are getting over run with case work."

The doctor moved over to his desk and sat down. "It is very hard to say. She appears to be fine and completely capable, but if there is something that she is not sharing... It could put herself and your team at risk. I don't know if that is a risk I am willing to take. Is she healed physically?"

"Her hand wasn't too bad and the cast was taken off about a week ago. She hasn't complained about her shoulder at all since she was released from the hospital." Gibbs stated. "She has shown nothing to suggest that she is anything but fine."

Dr. Hart mulled over if there was anything else that would affect his decision, but there was nothing that he could think of. The men seemed unconvinced of his concerns and it made him question if there was really anything to be concerned about. It all just seemed too perfect to him. None the less, Dr. Hart pulled the papers from Alex's file out. He gave them a once over before getting a pen and signing the documents. He just hoped, as Director Vance began signing papers, that he had not made the wrong decision.

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Hey guys and gals. I just want to thank you for reading and say that I hope you are enjoying the story so far. The first few chapters will be up since they are already written but it will be hard to find time to write after they are posted. I am working and doing summer course work for my classes next year, so time is going to be pinched.