McGee sighed as he looked at the manuscript on his desk. It was finished, edited, and ready for publication. But he still hadn't decided who to dedicate it to. He hated writing the dedications, because he didn't want anyone to feel left out. Not that that many people actually knew that he was Thom E. Gemcity. Sarah did, and he smiled at that. He'd dedicated Deep Six to her, because her encouragement had been the reason he'd gotten through it. He'd dedicated his second book to his parents, though they didn't know he'd written it. He'd meant to work on this months ago, but then Tony came up with the plan to avenge Ziva, and once they'd found her alive, he'd been busy helping her – they all had been.

The memories of how they had all worked so hard to help Ziva get away from her father, to help her become an agent, made him grin. He and Sarah had done similar things for each other, and in a way Kate had done the same thing for him. Then he had an idea, quickly googled a Hebrew phrase, and his fingers flew over the keys on his typewriter as he quickly hammered out his dedication.

They say that friends are family we choose. With that in mind, I dedicate this novel to my second family, a family as dear to me as my biological family: Abby, Gibbs, Tony, Ziva, Ducky and Palmer. Thank you all for everything you do. My life would be very boring without you. And thanks for making reality so much better, and so much stranger, than fiction. (Look it up, Tony. It means NOT REAL!)

This book is also dedicated to the memory of five women who helped to make us into a family, even if they never realized it. They are:

Caitlyn Todd – a wonderful and loyal woman, a sister in all but blood. Thank you for all you taught me when we met, and for what you meant to all of us. We miss you every day. I wish you could have been here with Ziva. The two of you could handle Tony.

Jenny Shepherd – you brought us together, and from the stories I heard, you helped make Gibbs the agent he is today. There are no words to thank you for all you did, or to say how much your presence meant to all of us. Thank you.

Shannon and Kelly Gibbs – Though we never met, Gibbs never would have become the father-like agent he is if not for you. You will always be remembered by the family that found Gibbs after he lost you.

Tali David – Another wonderful woman I never met, but wish I could have. Thank you for helping your sister learn that not everyone will use her, that some of us will care for her because she's her, not because of what she can do. You are not forgotten, and your death will be mourned until we join you in death. Zekher tzadik livrakha, aleha ha-shalom.

McGee looked it over, and smiled. His editor would tell him it was too long, but he didn't care. It was right. And hopefully Ziva wouldn't kill him for his horrible Hebrew. It wasn't anything he'd ever learned, after all, and Google only went so far. He put the dedication on top of the manuscript, added a short note and a picture, stuffed it in an envelope and sent it off.

********************************************************

McGee was surprised when, a few weeks later, he returned home to find a box from his publisher sitting outside his door. He was shocked when he opened it. He knew that she was efficient, but this turnaround was insane. Books, even when only six copies of a specific cover were printed (not that that was normal), took longer than two weeks to print. Still, the timing couldn't have been better. The whole team was down about the case they'd just finished. None of them did well when a child was involved, much less threatened. They'd managed to find her, but not before she'd been injured badly by the serial killer who liked to torture the children he took. Maybe a surprise was in order for everyone.

He grinned at the cover. He didn't know who had taken the photo, or when, but they were all laughing with each other, even Ducky and Palmer. His name blazed in red at the bottom, and he liked how it looked, Timothy McGee. The only thing that would stay the same for the regular publication was the title. He wondered how the team would react, then shook his head. He'd find out tomorrow, he supposed. Still grinning, he took a pen and started personalizing them, with specific comments for each of his friends.

***********************************************************