Title: Hell in a Handbasket
Author: Tearsofamiko
Rating: K
Disclaimer: They're fun to pull out of their display cases and play with occasionally. But I promise to return them clean and only slightly battered.
Spoilers: Not for an episode. However, it is the back story to my story 'A Matter of Faith and Time.'
Summary: "It was supposed to be a simple op, huh? Go in, get our guy, get out, right?" They should be so lucky. Prequel to 'A Matter of Faith and Time.'
He abruptly came to, dazed, his mind foggy and uncooperative. It refused to grant him access to the memory of what had happened, refused to move at a speed conducive to thinking clearly, but it really didn't seem to be bothering him as much as it should. As he lay there, trying to catch his breath, trying to move past the pain, a niggling thought did surface, breaking through the fog and bringing everything back in a rush.
Gibbs.
He sat up, saw the room spin and felt a bolt of white-hot pain slice through his left shoulder, and he sagged heavily on a nearby box. Panting through the dizzy nausea assailing him, he swiftly scanned the room and went cold when he didn't see anyone nearby. He didn't know how long he'd been out of it but someone should've been there. Especially since the last thing he remembered was Gibbs squaring off with an armed Marine with wild eyes.
Taking a deep breath, he hauled himself to his feet, staggering slightly into a stack of boxes. He leaned against the support, cradling his arm against his chest as he dug out his cell phone. Ziva and McGee were back at headquarters and he needed them here. They had to figure out what happened to Gibbs and he wasn't going to be as useful as he normally was. He listened impatiently to the ringer-tone in his ear, his need to know where his boss was shortening his nerves. Ziva's dulcet voice came over the line just as his patience finally ran out and he opened his mouth to respond when all hell broke loose.
The warehouse's adjoining room exploded, sending brick shards and wood splinters flying at Tony, who was thrown off his feet by the shockwave. Horror spread through him as he struggled to sit up, washing away the pain as he supported himself on his injured arm. Vaguely he heard Ziva hollering through the cell phone he'd dropped as he fell but he couldn't respond to it. Ice flooded his chest, freezing him where he sat, as a horrible realization spread through him.
Gibbs had been in there.
A/N: Heheh. . .so, I decided to have some fun and write out what happened to land Gibbs in the hospital in my story. ^^ So, we'll get to learn what Gibbs was thinking when Tony was shot. But this one'll end where 'A Matter of Faith and Time' begins, with Gibbs in the hospital in a coma. ^^