Summary: Gibbs and his team arrest a CIA agent for murder and think that this will be the end of the case, but they're wrong. When CIA director Sara Reese shows up and demands to work with them to prove her man innocent, Gibbs knows he's going to have a very difficult day. And with a dangerous drug dealer as their enemy, the case gets a lot more complicated.

Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS and the characters from the show but Sara Reese is of my own creation. She is an Original Character that was also used in my stories for Criminal Minds.

Chapter 1- Strong opponents

"You know, McGee, I've always been wondering what Gibbs' love life was like before we met him." Dinozzo said. It was a really boring morning in the office, and he felt like there was nothing better for him to do.

"I think it's none of our business, Tony."

"Come on! Don't tell me you've never wondered! We know he's worked with people from other agencies in the past, and there are some really interesting women in the FBI!"

"McGee is right. It's none of your business." they heard Gibbs say. As always, he showed up at the exact moment they were talking about something they didn't want him to hear. "We have a murder case. Follow me." he ordered and left the room without waiting any longer.

Gibbs drove to the crime scene, which was the dead marine's house. He couldn't forget what Dinozzo had said. It was just his agents' childish games, but still, they reminded him of things he didn't like to think about. What his love life had been like before they met him… Apart from his ex wives that they knew about, there were a few other girls. One, in particular, was really unforgettable, both in a good and a bad way. Of course, it had been a long time since he last saw that girl, and he really wished he'd never see her again.

At the crime scene, they started collecting evidence and Ducky reported that time of death was around 10 pm last night, about 12 hours ago. Cause of death was a large stab wound to the chest, while there were multiple smaller ones.

At some time, Gibbs noticed a beautiful young woman looking at them. She was standing outside the door of the marine's apartment, and she was smiling at him.

"Do you know her?" Gibbs asked his agents.

"No." Dinozzo said. "But I can certainly go and talk to her, if you want."

"Do your job, Dinozzo. I'll take care of the girl."

The older agent got up and walked towards the woman, who kept smiling. He was starting to get really annoyed. He didn't like people who smile all the time for no reason, especially when they're looking at a crime scene. What exactly was there that she thought was funny?

"Can I help you?"

"No, actually, I can help you. I have information you need."

"Go on, then. Tell me. I don't have much time."

"Don't worry, it's rather simple. I saw someone walk out of the house at around 10 pm last night."

"You can describe the man to our sketch artist, then."

"Don't go!" she said when he turned his back to her. "There was something else about that man. He was tall and he had a gun with him. He certainly looked like a killer."

"We'll know for sure when we investigate further." he said and left without giving her any more of his precious time. He didn't have time for beautiful young women. He had a case to solve.

The team returned to the NCIS headquarters to continue investigating the case. While they waited for the sketch of their suspect, Ducky called Gibbs and said that he had found something. Gibbs was surprised. He knew Ducky was good at his job, but he didn't expect him to find something interesting in less than half an hour.

"I made a mistake." the medical examiner admitted.

"What kind of mistake?"

"About the cause of death. It wasn't the stab wound. As soon as I took our victim here and had a more careful look at the body, I realized he was poisoned."

"That means the marine was stabbed while he was already dead. This was a hate crime."

"Yes, that's what it looks like."

Gibbs told his agents about the news he had learned, and not a long time later, the sketch artist came and left a piece of paper on Gibbs's desk. He took it, looked at it for a moment, and then turned to his team.

"We have a really big problem."

"What's wrong, boss?" Dinozzo asked.

"The man that our witness described… He's Ryan Sismond, the deputy director of the CIA."

McGee and Dinozzo looked at each other, without believing what they had just heard.

"What are you waiting for, McGee? Trace his mobile phone. Tell me where he is."

McGee was not really sure that he wanted to mess with the CIA, but then he thought that Gibbs would be protecting him. His boss was way scarier than any spy, and he was totally sure that there was nothing to be afraid of. After all, if their suspect thought he had the upper hand, Gibbs would not hesitate to break it.

McGee found out that the man they were looking for was at a hotel, not very far from the NCIS headquarters.

"Dinozzo, come with me. McGee, look for any piece of information that could help us in interrogation. Find a reason why our suspect hated the marine. Find his weaknesses." Gibbs ordered.

"Don't we need a warrant for arresting him, boss?"

"I already have one, McGee."

With that comment Gibbs left with Dinozzo following right behind him and McGee thinking that, as long as he had Gibbs to protect him, nothing could go wrong.

Tony and Gibbs went to the hotel and asked to see the deputy director of the CIA. Five minutes later, a tall man with expressionless gray eyes approached them, looking as though he didn't have time to play. Well, so did they. That meant that this would certainly be a hard battle.

"Ryan Sismond? We're agents Gibbs and Dinozzo. NCIS. We want to talk to you."

"About what exactly?"

"You were seen exiting George Clark's house yesterday at 10 pm. This morning he was found dead."

"I have nothing to do with that. I went to his house, but he was alive when I left."

"We can talk about this at the NCIS headquarters. Follow us."

Gibbs showed him the warrant, and the man followed without saying anything. He was sure he'd find a way to get out of that situation, and he didn't want to cause a mess at the hotel and see his face in the news the following day. He always found a way out. The only problem was that he really had no idea how strong an opponent he had this time.

Meanwhile, somewhere else, someone had just heard about the arrest, and she wasn't at all happy about it.