Miranda Mitchell raised an eyebrow when she, a civilian, was asked to listen in on a top secret meeting. She prayed that it was not another suicide mission. She didn’t know if she could handle it again. Not after what nearly happened last time. She shuddered and pulled the door open. Inside were the Dagger Squad minus Omaha, Admirals Kazansky, Warlock, and Cyclone, Captain Mitchell, Adam and Derek Kazanksy, along with four others she didn’t recognize. Miranda took notice of Halo’s distraught look and sat next to the WSO, giving her a comforting hug. Callie cried into Miranda’s shoulder. A feeling of uncertainty fell upon the room. No one spoke a word as Callie softly sobbed. Miranda observed the confusion and unease on her comrades' faces. Something had happened, and something wasn’t at all right. 

“I’m glad you all could get here on such short notice.” Cyclone gestured to the four new people. “These are NCIS Agents G Callen, Sam Hanna, Marty Deeks, and Kensi Blye. They are here to investigate the murder of Lieutenant Neil “Omaha” Vikander.” Not one person spoke, and Callie’s cry grew louder. Nobody knew what to say. How could one of their friends be dead? And why was it Omaha? 

“Sir, this…this can’t be true!” Natasha “Phoenix” Trace spoke up, looking around. The other Daggers broke into whispers and silent tears. Bob reached over and held her hand. “No…” 

“What does this mean, Mav?” Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw asked, looking directly at the captain. 

Agent Sam Hanna cleared his throat to get the other’s attention. “We will be setting up base here until we bring this killer to justice. Our tech crew, Eric Beale and Nell Jones, is working as we speak. By tomorrow NCIS Special Agents Jethro Gibbs and Anthony DiNozzo will arrive with Abby Sciuto.” He paused and looked back at his team. “With our joint efforts, we will not stop until this killer is found. We have brought you all here to ask questions and to protect you. We have reason to believe this killer may target you as well.” 

“What reasons do you have?” Logan “Yale” Lee asked from the back of the room. He exchanged a worried glance with Brigham “Harvard” Lennox. “Why would we even be targeted at all?” Something was off. Foul play like this wasn’t exactly rare, but with the murder of an aviator who participated in a top secret mission is weird. 

“Lieutenant Basset found a message by the victim’s body. On the wall behind the body was written ‘You’re next’ in blood,” G Callen explained as Deeks typed on the computer and a photo of the message appeared on the giant screen. Multiple gasps were heard and no one could look at the screen for long. That was their friend’s blood. No one in their right minds would be best friends of Omaha and stare at that picture for long. 

“What are we gonna do?” Jake “Hangman” Seresin yelled, his WSO Javy “Coyote” Machado nodded in agreement. “Yeah, why tell us this and then go around and tell us to do nothing?” 

“Probably so we don’t go about our day oblivious and end up like Omaha,” Billy “Fritz” Avalone retorted, glaring at the ground. He was good friends with Omaha. “This is probably a warning for us all.” 

“You are correct,” Iceman nodded to the aviator. “This is so you all stay alert, and if you see anything suspicious tell one of us immediately.” He took a step forward. “We will mourn the loss of Lieutenant Vikander, and to honor his memory, we need to stay vigilant. This killer messed with the wrong aviators. You mess with one of us, you mess with all of us. Speak nothing of this to anyone outside this room.” 

“Sir, does this mean we should stay on base for the time being?” Mickey “Fanboy” Garcia asked, staring at the COMPACFLT. “Does this mean we can’t go home?” Reuben “Payack” Fitch finished for his WSO, noticing how Fanboy’s voice broke. 

“I am afraid not,” Ice shook his head sadly. “Staying on base or in Miramar is the best thing for now. I am sorry. If that is all, you all may be dismissed. Stay safe and please, don’t do anything rash or stupid. For safety measures, use the buddy system. Never be alone.” With that, the COMPACFLT finished his speech and nodded to the others. 

“We will be on base and will start questioning tomorrow once our other agents arrive.” Kensi closed the laptop and picked it up. “Feel free to come to any of us if you have any questions, suspicions, or issues we can help with.” 

Miranda watched the NCIS agents leave the room followed by Cyclone and Warlock. Maverick and Ice stayed with the group. Adam “Snowman” Kazansky and Derek “Hotshot” Kazansky turned and looked at Miranda and Callie. Derek looked pale and tears had welled in his eyes. His blue eyes were filled with many different emotions. Adam also had tears in his eyes, but he tried to hide his emotions. Miranda could see through his facade. 

“Are you okay?” Derek softly asked Callie, stepping over to hug her. Callie graciously accepted it. Not trusting her voice, she shook her head. No, she was not okay. How was she ever going to be okay after what she had just witnessed? 

“I am so sorry,” Adam cleared his throat and tried not to cry. “They will catch this guy and everything will be over. Omaha will be avenged, and you can rest easier knowing his murderer is behind bars where he belongs.” 

Miranda locked eyes with Hangman and she couldn’t stop the fear from flashing in her eyes. Hangman clenched his jaw and shook his head. Phoenix and Bob came over to Callie, offering to take her to the on base housing. 

“Wait, what about our housing arrangements?” Miranda asked, getting her father’s and Ice’s attention. “Most of us live offbase. What is our plan for that?” Everyone murmured some type of agreement with her. 

“Good idea. I was thinking of pilots with their WSOs, excluding Phoenix, Miranda, and Callie. You three can live together in one of the bigger housing units. Adam, Derek, and Bob can house together as well,” Maverick sorted everything out and went around handing out keys to different housing units. 

“You all are ordered a day’s rest. Get some sleep, eat something, and get relaxed. We have a long few weeks ahead of us,” Ice ordered and shared a concerned look with Maverick. “Please, stay safe.” 

Ice and Maverick looked at their children and daggers with worry. Neither of them knew what they’d do if another one was killed. But alas, a killer was roaming in their midst. If they weren’t caught soon, more would die. Nobody wanted to be next, and no one wanted to attend another funeral. 

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I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Comments and votes are appreciated. I love hearing from all of you!

Have a wonderful day!

~Kat