Chapter One
It was Monday morning, thought Abby, so for Gibbs at least, things weren't going to be off to a good start. Not that she was worried; she knew she was Gibbs' favorite. Sure enough he came stomping into the bullpen, where she was waiting with the rest of the team, clutching his coffee and blinking angrily.
"Why are you all standing around?" he asked, "Don't you have work to do?"
"On it, Boss," said McGee quickly getting back to his computer. Ziva just nodded and got busied herself with the paperwork that was scattered all over her desk.
"And where the heck is Dinozzo?" He asked to the room at large, noting Tony's conspicuous absence before turning back to Abby.
"What is it Abs?" he asked.
"Where's my Caff Pow?" she asked hopefully.
"There are two dead marines, a murderer at large in the city, Dinozzo's late, again and all you can think about is your Caff Pow!" Gibbs said exasperatedly, and slightly angrily. Abby's hurt shone on her face, and seeing it Gibbs immediately regretted lashing out at her.
"I dropped it off in your lab before I came up," he said consolingly, "Now do you or do you not have work to do?" Abby quickly perked back up and got to business.
"That's exactly why I came to see you," she said, taking the remote from a desk nearby. After the push of a button a picture of a gun came onscreen.
"This is the gun we found at the crime scene, just your average rifle. It matches both of the bullets we found in the victim's heads.
"Prints?" The reply came as a grunt.
"I'm getting there, Gibbs," said Abby exasperatedly, shaking her head in dismay, pigtails flying. "The gun and the bullets we found are both completely clean of prints. I mean the guy would have had to sit their and clean it completely to hide the prints this well. You would think there would be at least the tiniest trace of a-"
"Abby," Gibbs prompted cautioningly.
"Right, like I was saying, they're both completely free of prints and sold at just about anyplace in town, but I did manage to get an i.d. on the hair we found the first victim holding,"
"And…" said Gibbs impatiently.
"It belongs," interjected Tim, moving out from around his desk, "to Claudia Marie Jackson." Taking the remote from Abby and clicking twice so that a picture of a young girl came up, he continued "10 year old daughter of Colonel Paul Jackson. Both she and her father were reported missing two days ago."
"Do we have an i.d. on the dead marines yet?"
"Yes Boss, 1st Lieutenant David O'Reilly, and uh well…"Tim paused uncomfortably.
"What McGee?" yelled Gibbs.
"Colonel Paul Jackson," mumbled Tim, whincing slightly as he watched Gibbs explode.
"Dammit," cursed Gibbs, already headed for the elevator, "Abby-back to your lab. McGee- I want everything you've got on our Colonel and Lieutenant. Ziva-" He called over his shoulder.
"Yes, Boss?" asked Ziva jumping up from her desk.
"Go find Tony" said Gibbs simply.
"Why me?" asked Ziva dejectedly as the elevator doors dinged shut.