Distress Call

When Gibbs was younger he'd been able to work till sunrise on his boat and still be functional throughout the next day. That ship had long since sailed; an apt phrase considering. At 0200 a distress call was not well received. Painful strobe light flooded Gibbs' bedroom as his cell went off, the hiss of the ringtone less important than how it intruded on his dream. Something to do with DiNozzo's marriage to a Russian terrorist via but the more he woke the less dream logic made sense. Gibbs swung from horizontal to vertical and blamed any creek on the bed and not his bones. A squint at the clock and a palm over his face later and he was ready to answer the phone.

"Gibbs. There better be a damn good reason for calling this number at 2:13 am," he greeted in a short bite to 'Unknown Caller'. Raspy breaths replied, followed by a groan and a hitch of air like someone flailing under a waterfall without noise from the water. Gibbs waited for whoever was calling to compose themselves. He didn't need to wait long.

"Boss. I- I need some help." Tim's voice was small and labored like he'd used paint-thinner for an inhaler. Gibbs sat straight.

"McGee, breath. Explain the situation."

White noise crackled over the call and Gibbs feared he'd lost connection until Tim rasped in anguish again. "McGee, details!"

"I've been . . . I can't even move. They broke my leg. I tried to . . . but he was so quick and I couldn't – "

"McGee, tell me where you are and your situation," Gibbs ordered, hoping the verbal shakedown would startle his agent into acting like he'd been trained to. Tim swallowed like a thick frog was lodged in his throat.

"Public Payphone by 'Little Milo's Burger Joint'. I . . . I've been r-raped, Boss."

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Abby couldn't stop shaking. She hadn't been having a good night to begin with – she'd left Bert at the lab by mistake and had vivid dreams that he'd come to life and ran out on her with Ducky who'd been married by her whole team of nuns. Every one of them. The ceremony took an age and the cake had gone bad by the time they finished. She blamed the rabbit food Timmy had been pushing her to eat. Abby knew no good would come of something without caffeine.

As much as she disliked her dream she preferred it to the nightmare now. Abby wanted Bert back. More than that she wanted Tim to be okay.

"I do not understand. Why can't you explain what happened to McGee?" Ziva snarled as she paced. Although Abby shook with the velocity of a miniature greyhound on a Minnesota morning she was not the most uneasy member of the family. That title belonged to Ziva and her war path. As Abby watched she expected to see friction burns on the hospital tiles in Ziva's wake. Were she in a better mood Abby would have warned Zinva that her shoes might combust. There was no better mood and there would be no better mood until Tim made a full recovery.

The family (minus Ducky who couldn't leave his mother at such a late hour) turned to Gibbs for his answer. Even DiNozzo looked over and he'd been silent the whole visit. Gibbs made an exasperated expression. Ziva threw her hands in the air.

"You call us in the middle of the night claiming McGee has been abducted and is recovering in the hospital yet you do not tell us why and how it happened. You have not even told us whether or not the assailant has been caught."

"It's not my place to say," Gibbs snapped. He sighed and scratched at his ear. It wasn't often that Gibbs refused to look at anyone but a mediocre lampshade had his complete attention. "McGee will divulge the specifics to you if and when he's ready to. Once the doctors say he's ready for questioning we'll get the information we need."

"But Gibbs we –"

"We will find the accomplice when we can talk to McGee. Until then you're going to have to calm down and be patient." Ziva and Gibbs stared at each other, caged tiger against stubborn ox. Ziva looked away and continued pacing like a silent hurricane. Abby and Tony exchanged a look.

Forty minutes later during the awkward grey period of sunrise before the sun actually rose a nurse called for Gibbs. Tim was ready. Their silent leader followed without a glance at the rest of the team. Ziva continued to pace. Abby stuttered between sleep and wakefulness. Tony hopped uncomfortable chairs to avoid new sunlight in his eye.

"Special Agent McGee has placed you as his emergency contact in the case he does not wish to divulge information to his family. I assume you are aware?" Gibbs nodded as they hurried, the nurse in quick clipping strides and he in long ones. They were at McGee's room within moments. "Although it's too soon to test for HIV we have concluded that he hasn't contracted any other STDs. There's extensive tarring as to be expected and his leg has been reset. Blood and semen samples have been taken as instructed and will be open to your team to collect."

A female doctor stood near Tim's bed. She was at a respectable distance and busied herself with a clipboard. She spoke in a calm tone but Tim wasn't paying attention. Half his face was swollen in a red potato skin. Bandages and blankets swathed the investigator too tight – McGee struggled against his bonds. His eyes flashed to Gibbs when the senior agent walked through the door then fled back to his broken leg. Tim chewed on a chapped and bloodied lip and stopped moving. The air stank of antiseptic and raw meat. Gibbs was reminded of Ducky's autopsy room after retrieving a body stuck in the sun.

"McGee," Gibbs opened and approached the bed. He nodded to the doctor who smiled sweetly. Gibbs thought she was too young for her job. Tim shuddered but did not look up.

"Boss," he returned. His voice was croaky. A vacuum of silence suffocated the room besides the several monitors and IV's hooked to Tim.

"The team's outside. They don't know everything; just that you were taken and beaten."

"If it's alright that's all I want them to know."

The doctor scribbled impatient chicken scratch but looked up to smile every so often. Gibbs swallowed and filtered through his thoughts. McGee changed his attention to his other leg.

"Of course." Another moment gone by before Gibbs continued. "Are you ready to talk?" The obligatory 'are you okay' was implied. Tim touched his thumb to his forefinger then swayed his head diagonally. Gibb didn't know what that meant so he waited.

"Yeah . . . I uh. . ." He cleared his throat and nervous eyes flicked to Gibbs again then back to his leg. "I left work at 2300. Ziva was with me at that time but we left in different cars. Since it was an early night I went to a coffee shop near my apartment. I didn't want coffee but the snicker-doodles I saw earlier. I – uh – I've been eying them for a few days so I wanted. . . Well I got them and took a walk. It was stupid – I know! But it was such a nice night and – and nothing like t-this has happened before."

"That's alright. Men don't often anticipate rape like women so it's common for men to freeze in situations like yours," the doctor interrupted. Although her comment was factual Gibbs wanted slug her. Any confidence Tim had was swallowed. His nose was almost parallel to his breastbone when Gibbs turned to look at him.

"Continue, McGee," he encouraged. Tim nodded.

"I was . . . They – one flagged me down for directions – a woman, redhead, hook nose, 5'5" and about 125lbs. She was missing a shoe so I thought. . . The other came up behind me. Clubbed me. I know. I know! I should have seen it coming. I should have noticed something! But I didn't and –"

"McGee, you are not to blame." Tim's chin shook but he said nothing more.

Over the next half-hour Gibbs grilled Tim for information. On the site his capturers took him, the man Tim killed after an hour of being raped by him, and any other facts that could be used to track down the woman who had gotten away. They skimmed over the details of injuries and Gibbs didn't ask for any more than what Tim thought was important. Tim quoted the woman – she was the more talkative.

"NCIS fucked with my husband. So now I'm going to fuck with NCIS."

Gibbs promised they'd run down all redheaded women in their thirties who'd had husbands wronged by the department. Extracting information was like pulling teeth. Gibbs asked if there was anything else to mention and the doctor said part of healing was talking about it. Gibbs wanted to deck her but Tim answered with a quiet, "She said I wasn't the first and I won't be the last. A-and if I spoke to anyone about her then she'd widen her list to family of Navy members."

"We'll get her McGee."

Tim wet his lips before answering with, "I don't want the other to see me. I know they're out there but I don't think . . . can't have them see me like this."

His shoulders stooped in obvious shame. Unsure if he should comfort his agent or not Gibbs tapped a near monitor. Tim jumped at the noise and winced as he settled.

"No one will think less of you. I don't think less of you." Tim hitched for the first time that night without anger or sorrow as the culprit. His ribs still throbbed and his lower half stung like – well like he'd been raped. To hear Gibbs say it was okay, to know his leader wasn't disgusted or embarrassed by him was the best feeling in the world. Gibbs turned to give his agent privacy.

The doctor had more tests to run and other patients to serve. She spoke quick and left quicker. For a long while it was just Tim and Gibbs.

"A friend of mine was raped by his superior; back when I served. We had our suspicions but we never confronted him on it. He hung himself little over a month later, couldn't deal with the shame, his letter said." Tim squinted his eyes shut. Any number of thoughts jumbled through his mind. Gibbs didn't concern himself with that, just getting the moral of his story across. "You aren't alone Tim. Don't ever think otherwise." Gibbs left and Tim's already shaky mask crumpled. He swore and cried and slammed a fist against the bed's cold metal rails. Bones popped and sensitive stitches re-opened. Tim ruined his hand twice more before a nurse rushing in to calm him. Hysterical with panic and embarrassment more pain meds were flushed into his system until Tim settled like a contented soufflé. There was no pain, no black eyed redhead staring him down, or team to disappoint. Only sleep greeted him.

Gibbs returned to the anxious team. He glanced their way without breaking stride. They followed in different ranges of walk from Tony's prowl to Abby's pigeon-toed dance.

"We'll talk at the bullpen. The hospital's ready to release evidence. Ziva, DiNozzo, move."

"On it Boss."

Abby cocked her head to the side as the other members took off. With her animated expression and thick pigtails she resembled the cocker-spaniel from Lady and the Tramp. Gibbs winced at his own logic; he was sounding like DiNozzo. He grabbed Abby by the arm as they walked.

"I'm going to need your digression on this one, Abbs."

"Leroy Jethro Gibbs, I am hurt! Aren't I always discreet?" she flustered.

"It's about McGee. I promised him no one on the team would be told the extent of what happened. Since you will be going over the evidence it's unavoidable." He stopped and leveled his gaze with hers to impress the severity of the situation. Abby quieted but did not falter.

"I promise you and McGee."

Gibbs rose an eyebrow as she raised her hand and crossed her heart.

"You will not breath a word of this to DiNozzo or Ziva. Especially DiNozzo."

"I promise, Gibbs. Cross my heart and hope to die. Stick a poodle in my eye."

"You won't be tempted into hinting at the truth. If anyone asks you say classified. Send them to me if it comes to that."

"Gibbs. . ."

"I mean it Abby. No one can know."

Nothing else was said as they left for the lab department. They passed nurses and patients and wailing children. An orderly coaxed one confused man back into his room. He gaped like a dry fish as they walked by. Abby had never been so quiet and Gibbs didn't see anything in front of him; not really. Abby almost wasn't surprised by the seamen sample. She collected the blood and a swab from McGee's coat where the female spat on him. They hurried back to the parking lot then headquarters, Abby making nonsense conversation to fill their silence. By the time they arrived at HQ a fleeting normalcy was established.

Ziva and Tony had obvious questions but remained quiet. Gibbs gave his instructions to find the redhead.

Think I'm gonna leave it at that unless anyone says otherwise. Although I haven't been raped before I've come emotionally pretty close. My heart goes out to anyone, woman or man who has been forced into a situation like that. Constructive criticism or just a word would be much obliged. Thanks for reading!