Leroy Jethro Gibbs was usually very good at dealing with hysterical mothers. Their child was missing, they were panicked, and he understood it in his own way. He was patient from having to remain still for a target to happen across his crosshairs as a sniper. He was good at listening thanks to his job as an investigator. He was a former husband four times over and he was a former father. Things like that stuck with him.

He was a Marine after all. Marines never stop being Marines.

The case involved a family with one Naval Officer who pushed important papers. Very important papers. His daughter and son had been in the car when someone sideswiped it, killing him and injuring the girl heavily. The son, Toby, was missing. The daughter, Missy, was in surgery. The mother, a housewife by the name of Elizabeth Jerald, had been at home preparing a surprise party for the kids.

The kids were fraternal twins. Their birthday was off to a great start.

There was a BOLO out on the car, the plate and model taken from witness statements and video surveillance videos. There was a general description on the driver from the witness statements as well. He and Tony had come over the the Jerald's house to ask the wife about her husband's possible enemies. The papers he pushed were important sure but things weren't always what they seemed.

The questioning had centered around following the distraught woman around her house as she looked for supplies to stay overnight with her daughter. They'd asked if she knew what her husband's job was, if she could think of anything out of the ordinary, and if he had any enemies. She knew he helped make sure paperwork was in order and that things got moved when her husband signed for them to move. She stated that nothing strange had happened recently. She also stated that her husband was happy at work, his coworkers liked him, and that she wasn't aware of any possible bad blood her husband could have had.

They then had to ask about her. What did her daily life look like? What had she been doing during the accident? Did she have any bad blood with anyone? That was about the time she finally snapped at them. Tony dutifully took notes as she screamed that she had been doing her typical chores, setting up for the party alone but neighbors had seen her in the front yard when the accident occurred, and that she had no enemies. Her eyes had flashed a lie on the last statement but before Gibbs could ask about it, she'd stuffed a toy rabbit into the duffle she'd been packing as she asked if she could see her daughter.

The tone was expected but it wasn't appreciated.

There was something about the snippy tone of an annoyed woman that made Gibbs' hackles bristle. He'd had too many wives (three of them) and lovers to not recognize that tone. It had never been a good thing to hear but there had been moments he could put up with it. Ex-wife Number Three, Jenny, and Lieutenant Mann all giving him hairy eyeballs in the office was one of those moments where he could put up with that tone. When he had two hours of sleep, his coffee dropped by idiot LEO Probies at the crime scene which was not up to Ducky's standards (Local LEOs being at fault again), a child hospitalized, and another child missing that tone was not welcomed.

"Yes Ma'am," he stated as calmly as he could manage as Tony flipped his notepad closed. "you may go and see Missy."

The woman shoved her toiletry bag into the duffle, her eyes rolling as if she was saying 'Well thanks so much Agent Gibbs,' before she zipped the bag closed. She shoved past him, thick heels thudding against the wood floors of her front hallway. The front door squeaked open but she waited for him to usher Tony outside. She had a question of him once his shoes hit the front porch.

"You don't have children, do you, Agent Gibbs?" she sneered as she slammed the door shut. Her keys jangled as she locked the door. She was paying so little attention she hadn't noticed he'd turned to face her until she rammed into him when she turned to head for her car.

"I do," he said.

"You do what?" she snarled in that snippy voice he could have sworn was only for movie roles and his ex-wives before they took golf clubs to his head.

"Have a child."

"Oh really?" she said, brows hidden her bangs, eyes wide as she searched for the lie she thought he was hiding.

"Yeah," he said in his disjointed way. He turned on his heel, brushing past a wide-eyed Tony as he declared, "She's dead."

Mrs. Jerald was still standing on the porch, the duffle dropped at her feet, when Gibbs and Tony pulled away from where they'd parked across the wide street. Tony was wise and remained silent as Gibbs drove them back to the Naval Yard.