Author's Note: So this story came about last night when for some reason the film Family Man came into my head, which led to the song Que Sera Sera popping into my head (I don't understand the connection either) Anyway a plot bunny was born and I felt the need to get typing. As for the title for anyone who doesn't know Que Sera Sera is french and roughly translated means whatever has to be, will be. This should make a bit more sense as the story goes on, anyway please read and let me know what you think.

Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS, the song Que Sera Sera or any other type of media product this story may seem reminiscent of

Slamming the fridge door shut Jenny cursed under her breath, no milk, she pulled open her cupboards, no coffee or any form of juice either. Rubbing irritably at her forehead she wondered what it said about her that the only thing she had to drink in the house was bourbon. It hadn't always been like this, ok so she had never been a domestic goddess but before she had taken the job as NCIS Director five months ago she had at least had some semblance of a proper home life. Admittedly she had still been alone, although she'd at least went out on dates. Since becoming Director she had been out once and that had been an unmitigated disaster, she had very grudgingly accepted a date with a Senator, only to find the man was just as big a sleaze as she had first suspected. She had spent most of the date extracting his hand from out from underneath her dress, the fifth time he had tried it she had squeezed his hand as hard as she could manage, breaking two of his fingers, funnily enough the date hadn't lasted long after that, he had made his own way to the emergency room. After that she had amazingly still had offers but with hindsight she had decided it was easier to decline.

Jenny leaned against the side of her kitchen worktop, she knew what had brought on this malaise, it was the thought of her fortieth in seven days time, she would be forty and alone, something she had never considered when putting together her five point plan. Jenny felt as though she was drowning in the silence that surrounded her, she needed out of this house. Grabbing her car keys she headed out to her own car, it was already half eight and she wasn't calling back her security just so they could accompany her to the store. Slipping into the driver's seat she turned the keys in the ignition, the engine gave a dying splutter before completely giving out on her. Groaning she hit her head off the steering wheel, this was what she got for ignoring the damn thing for the past couple of months.

For a few moments she just sat in the stationary vehicle, considering her options, she could either give up, go inside, drink bourbon and work through even more paperwork, or she could walk to the store, completely ignoring all the warnings she had received from her security about going out alone. Staring at the darkened house, Jenny already knew that her mind was made up, she needed to forget who she was for at least a short while, forget the choices she had made that had taken her here.

Her heels clicked softly on the pavement and as the cool October breeze whipped through the air she began to wish she had grabbed her coat, the thin suit jacket she had on just wasn't cutting it. She shivered, Goosebumps burst out all over her arms, the back of her neck and her stocking clad legs, her skirt suit while stylish had not been made for warmth. It took her almost half an hour to get to the nearest 24/7, the automatic doors swooshed open, the heat of the store seeping out. Jenny stepped inside, reveling in the warmth before ironically heading for the fridge grabbing some milk and orange juice. She gazed around the store, wondering if she wanted anything else, out of the corner of her eye she saw a woman and her young daughter standing by the sweets. The woman was clutching onto a map while the little blonde girl was begging her mother to buy her something, Jenny watched as the woman bent down and said something to her daughter, the pair started laughing and the woman swooped the little girl into her arms and tickled her, carrying her to the till. Jenny was torn between the desire to smile and cry, she wouldn't have that, she was realistic enough to know that even if she did get her dating life in order it wouldn't be quick enough, she had made her choice years ago between a family and a career. She let out a sigh, she had made her choice, now she had to live with the outcome.

Deep in thought she made her way to the now empty till point and smiled politely if not distractedly at the woman behind the cash register.

'Such a sweet little girl, do you have children?'

The question pulled Jenny out of her daze and she looked up at the smiling older woman, her face was friendly, with laughter lines framing her eyes and mouth, her gray hair was pulled back in a bun, loose strands had fallen out and curled around her face. Jenny gave a small uncomfortable cough as she answered,

'No I don't'

'Oh well, plenty of time for all that', the woman smiled encouragingly at her

'Maybe'

'You don't sound too convinced'

Jenny wasn't sure how to reply to that but she had overwhelming urge to be honest, 'I passed up my chance for a family a long time ago'

'And you regret that choice?'

'No!', she shook her head vehemently and said in what she hoped was a determined tone, 'I have so much, I have a great career and I'm completely self sufficient'

'But are you happy?'

Getting irritated now Jenny snapped, 'Yes, I have everything I wanted, everything I had in my life plan'

The woman just gave her a small smile as she handed the bag over the till, Jenny turned to leave, only for the woman's voice to call out to her,

'You know what has to be will be'

Jenny ignored her and stormed out of the store, she couldn't understand why that woman had gotten to her so much and what did she even mean! She hoped this wasn't the beginning of a mid-life crisis, she had enough to deal with already.

Deciding she couldn't be bothered with going the long way home along all the main roads Jenny cut down one of the back alleyways, she knew her security detail would have a coronary if they knew what she was doing, that thought made her smile slightly, she hated having every move watched. All of a sudden her phone began to ring, the shrillness breaking through the nights almost oppressive silence, not even bothering to check caller ID Jenny pressed the answer button, 'Sheppard'

'Where are you?', the deep voice on the other end demanded and she didn't even need to ask who it was, only one man would be so infuriating and blatantly rude.

'I'm fine thank you Agent Gibbs and how are you tonight'

'Don't play games with me Jen, I have a prisoner transfer order that needs your signature and you are not in your office'

'You know it's those observational skills that make you such an invaluable detective Jethro, I went home'

'Well come back in, it's only nine and that usually means you are still at your desk, you can't just swan off home when you feel like it'

'You are aware that you are no longer my boss aren't you? And for future reference I would hardly call leaving the office at half seven 'swanning off', not that it is any of your concern'

'I need this signed and I need it now Jen'

'Fine fax it to the house and I'll deal with it when I get in'

His tone changed from one of impatience to one she couldn't quite figure out, 'Where are you then?'

'I went to the shops, I needed to pick up some things'

'And your detail?'

'Is none of your concern, I've given you a solution to your problem now goodnight Agent Gibbs', With that Jenny disconnected the call, her blood boiling, that bloody man he was so infuriating. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't hear the footsteps coming from behind her, her phone rang again and she answered, snapping down the phone, 'What the hell do you want OH!'

Someone grabbed her from behind, causing her phone to fly out of her hands. She could hear someone breathing heavily in her air, the strong stench of alcohol wafting from them, almost choking her. Whoever it was had grabbed her so her arms were pinned down, she tried to struggle against them, but they were bigger, stronger and she had had no warning so was left at a big disadvantage. They growled into her ear 'Stop moving, just give me your bag!'

'Hell no!' Jenny gasped out, still trying to pull free from her attackers grasp, her grip tightening on her bag, that was when she felt a sharp pain in her side, she let out a small moan and her grip loosened very slightly. Despite this she continued to try and fight her attacker, at least until she felt another sharp pain in her stomach, this one caused her to cry out and let go of her bag. Her attacker grabbed it and ran, leaving Jenny to fall to the ground.

Annoyed that once again she had went off without her detail and also more than slightly irritated that she had hung up on him Gibbs had decided to call Jenny back and irritate her some more. A pissed off Jenny was always entertaining and at least he would know she was safe, because if he was honest his gut was playing up and it had been for most of the day. He hit the redial button and waited, she answered almost immediately, 'What the hell do you want OH!'

The minute he heard her cry of alarm he called out, 'Jen you ok? Jen, Jenny are you there?'

By this time his team had looked over in alarm, but Gibbs's attention was elsewhere, he was to busy focusing on what was going on on the other end of the phone, he could only make out muffled sounds and footsteps. Swearing loudly he threw the phone at the desk and turned to face his team,

'McGee I need a trace on the Director's mobile phone, I need her location now!'

The younger man nodded and turned back to his computer, typing frantically. Dinozzo and Ziva shot him a concerned look as Tony asked, 'Boss is the Director ok?'

Gibbs ran a harried hand through his hair, 'I don't know, I heard her cry out and then the line went dead', his tone became even more brittle as he snapped, 'McGee I want a location!'

He looked up at his boss's concerned face, 'I tracked the Director's cell phone to an alleyway just off Acker Street'

'Ok then let's go', Gibbs reached into his drawer and grabbed his badge and gun, 'Ziva arrange for an ambulance to meet us there'

Ziva appeared shocked by the request but knew better than to argue. As the team made their way to the elevator's Tony turned to Gibbs and asked, 'You think she's hurt boss?'

Gibbs nodded grimly as he replied, 'Yeah I do'

Jenny tried to ignore the pain in her chest and abdomen as she attempted to push herself up, placing her palm flat on the ground she made an effort to sit up, pain ripped through her and she fell backwards, her hand flying up to the area where the pain was radiating from. Her hand encountered a warm sticky wetness, she held her hands up so she could see them, they were covered in blood. She let out a low moan of despair and angled herself so she could see better, the front of her white blouse was stained with her own blood, which was currently seeping out of her and spilling out onto the ground.

Her chest felt tight and she was struggling to draw breath as she made an attempt to find the source of the bleed, she couldn't, there was too much blood and the pain was spreading, thinking back she was pretty sure he had stabbed her twice. Her head fell back again, smacking off of the ground, she was so cold.

Jenny made one last effort to sit up, she managed to prop herself up slightly and began to cough violently, gasping for breath she raised a hand to her mouth and knew instantly that she had coughed up blood, she let out a groan as she broke out in a cold sweat and slipped back down again, the pain was too intense for her to stay in that position.

The concrete was cold and hard against her cheek, she couldn't believe this was it, this was how she was going to die, alone in a dingy alleyway. She felt a single tear trickle down her face, no one was going to miss her, she thought about trying to fight the inevitable but she was so tired of fighting, where had it really gotten her? She saw everything around her blur together, felt the pool of blood she was now lying in grow, her ears were ringing and she just wanted to go to sleep. Closing her eyes she decided to give up, why try and resist the unavoidable? And there in the darkened alleyway, bleeding profusely, Jennifer Sheppard stopped fighting for the first time in her life and let the darkness claim her.

xxxxx