NCIS
Chapter 1
Secrets don't make friends
Tony woke to the sun warming his face and the even breathing of the brunette in his arms. He opened his eyes and looked at her sleeping soundly. He smiled and kissed the top of her head.
"Happy Birthday." He whispered softly before bringing her left hand up to his lips and kissing her knuckles.
She wrinkled her nose in her sleep at the contact making him chuckle and her emerald green eyes fluttered open. She sighed softly, content and a smile spread across her perfect lips as she looked up at him with her hand still in his.
"Good morning." She whispered her voice both soft and sweet.
Tony wrapped his arms tighter around her pulling her closer and she responded by laying her head on his chest and tracing circles with her fingertips across his skin. The smell of her hair and the way she fit perfectly in his arms made him smile and he closed his eyes to take it all in. However when he reopened them she was gone and the bed beside him was cold as stone.
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"It's just going to be another day at work." Tony thought to himself as he exited the elevator coffee in hand, bag on his shoulder. He did not bother to even look at Kate or McGee this morning or throw them some type of a greeting as he made his way to his desk. He hoped that nobody would notice that he was uncharacteristically quiet. He was half way there when Kate piped up.
"What's the matter Tony you get up on the wrong side of someone else's bed this morning?" She wondered with a smug grin on her face.
"Mind your own business Kate." Tony retorted but this time there was no sign of a smile.
"Okay Tony what was this one's name?"
"I didn't sleep with anyone last night Kate."
"Sure you didn't." Kate said with a nod.
"He didn't Kate he was busy thinking about his former wife." Gibbs said as he came up from behind Tony taking his coffee from him as he walked by.
"A little insensitive don't you think Boss?" Tony questioned as he went the rest of the way to his desk, dropping his bag on the floor as he sat down.
"I'm not here to be sensitive DiNozzo." Gibbs said coldly as he sat down himself before sipping the stolen coffee.
"Wait, you had a wife?" Kate laughed thinking to herself that this must be some type of joke. "Tell me was it your inheritance she was interested in?" Kate figured that had to be the only explanation and she was probably chased away by his playboy attitude.
"Shut up Kate." Tony muttered.
"I imagine that she must have been a dumb blonde like most of the girls you've dated-"
"DAMN IT KATE I SAID SHUT UP!" Tony bellowed as he got to his feet and slammed his fist on his desk.
Kate flinched as though he hit her instead of the desk. McGee looked up from his computer in surprise and Gibbs was just completely silent.
For a long moment Tony and Kate stared at each other. One side too angry for words, the other terrified at what might happen next.
Tony took a deep breath and grabbed his bag from the floor and made a beeline for the elevator while Kate stood there frozen and scared. She had never seen Tony so worked up and she was kicking herself for not keeping her mouth shut.
Gibbs slammed his coffee down on his desk issuing another flinch from Kate as he rose from his chair avoiding Kate's eyes on his way to the elevator catching the doors just before they closed and entering it with Tony.
McGee who had gotten to his feet to follow Gibbs stopped when he saw a tear escape the corner of Kate's eye.
"Kate."
She sniffed and brushed it away hoping that he didn't see it but at the same time knowing that he already had.
"What just happened?" She asked. She did not expect an answer and was surprised that McGee had one.
"She was murdered Kate, three years ago during an undercover. Tony was really broken up about it. She was everything he ever wanted smart, beautiful, kind, and she was Gibbs' best worker."
"She was a special agent?"
McGee sighed. "She was more than that."
"What do you mean?"
"She was Gibbs' daughter and…uh…she was my best friend."
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Tony sat in the corner of the elevator his bag at his feet with his arms hugging his knees to his chest. He was silent and even Gibbs who was leaning against the wall after hitting the button to make the elevator stop found that unsettling.
Both men were tired from a mostly sleepless night no doubt and by the looks of it Tony did not even bother to try. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair was a mess. Gibbs wondered if he even showered this morning.
The minutes ticked by slowly. Tony knew that Gibbs was not about to say anything first. He hated this considering that he found Gibbs always had the answers and wasn't giving him any when he needed them most. He cleared his throat which was scratchy and raw.
"I'm…sorry Boss." He muttered.
"Don't be."
"What?"
"You have every right to be angry, Kate was out of line." Gibbs replied. There were no words to describe how angry he was himself for the way Kate behaved but he blamed himself partially because she did not know about Brooke and partially because he didn't try to put a stop to it.
"Does it ever stop hurting Boss?" Tony stared straight ahead at his own reflection in the steel doors of the elevator. He was a mess and Brooke would hate it if she knew he was like this.
"I don't have the answer you're looking for Tony, I wish I did." Gibbs admitted. He understood Tony's pain and as much as he tried he would never completely let go of Shannon not that he ever wanted to.
"I still see her everywhere I go Boss. I see her at work, at home, in my dreams." Tony sighed. He knew that confessing this to Gibbs was not the best idea but he was the only one listening and the only one who understood.
"I see her too DiNozzo, all the time." Gibbs admitted. Almost losing his first born once was hard enough. Losing her for real years after Shannon and Kelly almost killed him. It made him feel like a failure for not protecting her better.
They were both silent again until Gibbs' phone rang in his pocket. He took it out and flipped it open.
"Gibbs."
"We've got a body." McGee responded.
"Meet us in the garage." Gibbs hung up the phone and placed it back into his pocket then punched the button starting the elevator back up.
"Dry your eyes DiNozzo, we've got a case."
"I wasn't crying." Tony said defensively.
Gibbs tried to ignore the fact that Tony quickly rubbed his eyes as the elevator took them down to the garage.
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"What was her name?" Kate asked cautiously, hoping that McGee understood her curiosity.
"Her name was Brooke, we went to MIT together…today would have been her twenty eighth birthday." McGee answered while looking down at his feet.
They were both in the elevator now on their way down to meet Gibbs and Tony. From the moment she found out about their secret Kate felt remorse. She wanted to apologize immediately to both Gibbs and Tony but how was she supposed to do that without breaking McGee's trust?
She sighed. "This is perfect, why didn't I just shut up?" She thought. She sighed and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry Tim I shouldn't have said those things." She knew she was apologizing to the wrong person but if she was McGee's best friend then she owed it to him as well.
"Thanks Kate."
The sound of the elevator interrupted her thoughts and she and McGee stepped out into the garage. Tony was already sitting in the front seat of the van with the brim of his NCIS hat covering his eyes. The second he heard the elevator he turned away from Kate and McGee's gaze. The last place he would rather be was in the cramped space of the van next to Kate. He figured that McGee probably told her about his wife and he did not know if that made him feel any better or just worse.
Tony flinched when the door to the other side of the van opened and Kate climbed in. He felt her eyes burning a hole through the back of his head but he was reluctant to look at her let alone speak to her. She wanted to apologize but sighed and gave up, looking straight through the windshield instead waiting for Gibbs to just hurry up and get in.
She got her wish when McGee slid in next to her followed by Gibbs who slammed the door closed a little harder than necessary.
He started the engine in silence and that was the only sound other than the four of them breathing for the entire trip.
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By the time Gibbs cut the engine of the NCIS van Tony was already halfway out determined to get the job done and get back to his desk where he could be by himself with his thoughts but it was never that easy.
Kate climbed out after him but stayed by the front of the van while he went toward the back for the bags. She realized that she had been staring straight out of the windshield the entire ride but had not bothered to take notice that they were in the woods until now. She turned to look at Tony but he had already disappeared into a clearing. McGee looked at Kate with sympathetic eyes and shrugged.
"It'll be fine just, give him some space." He assured her.
"Thanks Tim." Kate nodded.
"Hey, will you two quit socializing and get to work?!" Gibbs barked as he closed the driver's door, again with extra force.
"It might be best to stay out of his way too." McGee added, his eyebrows disappearing beneath his hat.
"MCGEE!"
"I'm on my way boss!" Dutifully McGee left Kate and jogged after Gibbs.
"Good idea." Kate said to herself in response to McGee's suggestion.
She stood there for another moment expecting Gibbs to call for her too and when he didn't she took that to mean that he was giving her the silent treatment and decided that it was best for her to just wait for Ducky and Palmer to arrive on the scene.
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Tony crouched down next to the body, his camera cradled in his gloved hand. The victim who was a male did not show any obvious signs of a struggle. There were no stab wounds, signs of strangulation, or signs of suffocation that he could see. The victim was just a middle aged civilian making him wonder why NCIS was called. But why was he in the middle of the woods and how did he get here?
Tony got to his feet and snapped a picture of the man's face. He seemed familiar but Tony could not place a name to the face.
Then something out of the corner of his eye caught his attention while he was studying the guy's face searching for the name.
On the victim's right hand was a platinum ring that looked a lot like something from the Godfather.
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"Was anybody with you when you discovered the body?"
The woman that Gibbs and McGee were questioning stood beside her husband shaking in terror while her father stood on her other side. Gibbs looked at the three of them and felt a sharp sense of longing in the pit of his stomach.
The woman was not a day over twenty five. She was tall with blue eyes and thick blonde hair tied back into a messy bun on top of her head. She was dressed in a pair of spandex Capri pants and a Nike tank top. One of her running sneakers, Gibbs noticed, was untied which caused him to believe that she tripped and that's how she found the body.
"No." She whispered.
"Did you notice anything out of the ordinary?" McGee asked, following Gibbs' first question.
"You mean other than a dead body in the middle of the woods?" The older man asked placing a hand on his distraught daughter's shoulder.
"Sir, we understand-"
"Boss, you'd better come and take a look at this!" McGee was cut off by the frantic voice of Tony who by the sounds of it found a piece of evidence that might link them to the murderer.
"Stay with them." Gibbs ordered as he turned in the other direction in a dead run. He knew the difference between DiNozzo's tone when he found exciting evidence and terrifying evidence. This was the latter.
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"It can't be." Tony thought. He had taken the ring off of the victim's finger to get a closer look and what he found engraved on the inside was disturbing in a number of ways.
There was no way that this could be for real. Just the sight of the words made him nauseous.
He looked up when he heard Gibbs' heavy footfalls and got to his feet.
"What is it?" Gibbs asked irritated that Tony interrupted his questioning for a ring of all things.
Tony looked up at him and shook his head. "You're never going to believe this Boss."
"What is it DiNozzo!?" Gibbs asked again this time he was showing his impatience.
Tony was silent for another moment staring at the piece of jewelry in his hand.
"Tony, got something you want to share with the class?" Gibbs asked sarcastically.
Tony said nothing but handed the ring to Gibbs.
Gibbs snatched it from him and looked down at the words written on the inside. He fell silent and stared the way Tony had at not only what was written but the way it was written. He turned it over in his hands shaking his head in disbelief.
Tony wanted to ask if Gibbs was alright but he knew better and feeling as horrible as he did with the discovery he was sure he could guess that Gibbs was far from being okay. "Boss, do you think it's really him?" Tony wondered cautiously.
"If it is it's not like she can tell us DiNozzo." Gibbs growled and Tony looked at his feet.
Gibbs sighed and took an evidence bag from his pocket and slipped the ring inside. After doing so he put the bag in his pocket, a thousand emotions that he did not even think existed until now crashed into him like a tidal wave.
"Boss?" Tony asked confused.
Gibbs cleared his throat trying to rid the lump that formed. "Get McGee to escort the witness back to NCIS. You and I are going back together we need to talk to Abby. Keep quiet about this until we get there."
"But shouldn't-"
"NOW DINOZZO!" Gibbs hollered.
Tony said nothing more and ran off.
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Wedding of Brooke and Tony; Gibbs' memory
She smiled as her father entered the room lighting up at the sight of his only daughter, only child who was dressed in her white custom made Vera Wang gown. Her long wavy brown hair was pinned in a complicated half up style. Her green eyes were shining with both excitement and nerves. Her bridesmaids were pinning her veil to her hair as she noticed him standing in the doorway from the reflection in the floor length mirror. She turned around when the girls in their dark purple dresses finished their task.
Gibbs was blown away at how much and how quickly his daughter had grown. He watched her take a deep breath and look at the three young women around her.
"Do you mind giving me a few minutes alone with my father?" She asked them in her soft tone.
The girls obliged and picked up their white bouquets from the small table near the door as they walked past Gibbs on their way out. The last girl to leave closed the door behind her leaving the room silent in her wake.
"How is he?" She wondered shaking as she asked. She drew in a sharp breath. She secretly asked him to spy knowing he would be in there anyway to threaten his life if he ever hurt his little girl.
"Wondering the same thing you are." Gibbs replied. He saw that it relaxed her just a bit knowing that she was not the only one who was nervous.
"Are you sure this is what you want?" Gibbs asked. He had taken to asking her this question often as of late. Making sure that the dress was exactly what she wanted as well as the shoes, the cake, the flowers, the bridesmaids' dresses and the location of the wedding, honeymoon, and everything else in between. But now he was asking her about the wedding itself and most importantly the guy.
"It's more than what I want." She replied with a slight nod.
"I'm so proud of you Brooke." Gibbs said. He let a small tear escape as he kissed her on the cheek.
"I'm proud of you too Dad, mostly for not killing Tony when you found out we were engaged." She said with a giggle as her own eyes welled up after noticing that her father was already crying.
"Don't do that," He said softly. "You'll ruin your makeup." He took a handkerchief from his pocket and dabbed the corners of her eyes.
"Thank you." She laughed. She took the cloth from him and dried his eyes too. "You know that if you do that you're going to get me started."
"I'm sorry." Gibbs smiled.
"Don't be." She returned the smile and wrapped her arms around his middle like she did as a child when she greeted him every night after a long day of work. "If you're worried that I am not going to need you anymore don't, I will always need you and I'll always be your little girl and you will always be my Daddy, always and forever."