The team of "NCIS: LA" celebrated the holidays the only way they know how: by tracking down dangerous criminals. 

In "Merry Evasion," a senator's daughter, Lily Lockhart ( Michelle Trachtenberg), is almost attacked in her home, so NCIS is called in to protect her and figure out why she was targeted. 

While the first attempt at an attack failed after Lily's dog went after the attacker, her pursuers try to strike again. Sam (LL Cool J) and Callen (Chris O'Donnell) take her into protective custody, but are ambushed on the way to the NCIS headquarters. To save her, they ditch their car and blow it up. 

A gun fight ensues with their pursuers, and Sam takes one of them out. The man taken out was the one who tried to break into Lily's home, and it turns out he is with a Bosnian group called the RODA. 

Sam and Callen realize the Bosnians are tracking them, so they put Lily in a dumpster during the gun fight and use the sewer lines to throw the Bosnians off their trail. 

Deeks (Eric Christian Olsen) is able to tie the attack to Ludomir Susic, a Bosnian. A foreign account was also discovered that had a $200,000 deposit, which leads them to believe that Senator Lockhart was working for Susic then backed out, which prompted the attack. 

However, the team is mistaken about a major detail. Lockhart was part of the military force that killed Susic's father, a warlord, in Bosnia, so Susic wants retribution for his father's death. The deposited money is insurance to make Lockhart appear like a traitor. 

The NCIS team is able to take down Susic and his associates and save the Senator from certain death. 

Meanwhile, in Afghanistan, Kensi (Daniela Ruah) and Granger (Miguel Ferrer) see that CIA Agent Vostanik Sabatino (Erik Palladino) is also there on a special mission. He tells Kensi that the last sniper who was given the assignment to take out White Ghost was captured and beheaded, and Kensi is furious that Granger kept that information from her. 

Despite that news, Kensi did receive something special for the holidays: Hetty (Linda Hunt) set up a secure line so she and Deeks could finally talk speak to one another. 

When "NCIS: LA" returns from its winter hiatus, the next episode, "Allegiance," will focus on the murder of a federal agent in L.A that is tied to Hawala, an ancient system of money transfer. The murder will reunite Kensi and Granger with the NCIS team in L.A to try to stop a possible terrorist attack. 

Despite Daniela Ruah's pregnancy, her character, Kensi, will appear in every episode, according to "NCIS: LA" showrunner Shane Brennan. 

"If you noticed, she went to a cold climate where she needs to rug up!" Brennan told TVLine of Kensi's bulky clothing while on her mission in Afghanistan.  

Brennan said that Kensi's mission "has turned into a great arc for the second half of the season - the whole mystery of what she's doing there, who the 'White Ghost' is.... And it's been fabulous to team her up with Granger."

When the season returns, cult film actor Danny Trejo will also add excitement to February sweeps. 

Trejo, who has appeared in movies like "Machete Kills" and "The Devil's Rejects," will guest star as a character who has ties to Hetty, Callen and Sam. 

"It's a big episode that takes everyone down to Mexico, where there's a lot of action as well as character stuff for Callen, Sam and Hetty," Brennan said. 

"NCIS" returns with "Allegiance" on Jan 14 at 8 p.m. on CBS.