Chapter 1

Washington, D.C., now...

"So...how long does the probie thing go on for?" Ellie asked as she tried to squeeze more water out of her hair. "There has to be an end to it, doesn't there?"

Tony grinned. "Probie?" he asked.

Tim made a show of looking at his watch.

"I think it lasted for ten years for me, Bishop. So you've got...approximately nine years and ten months to go."

"Great. Just great. Can some of it not involve falling into a canal?"

"I was falling into ditches just last year," Tim said.

Ellie nodded. "Figures."

"Remember. You wanted to be here," Tony said.

"You were a lot nicer before I was on your team," Ellie said.

"That's because we have to be."

"I'll remember that for the next job."

"Good. Now, you can run those bags down to Abby," Tim said.

Ellie groaned, but she took the bags and left the bullpen.

"Good going, Probie," Tony said. "And that was a good find."

"Thank you."

"DiNozzo, McGee. Upstairs."

Gibbs walked by so quickly that Tony and Tim barely had time to clue into what he had said before he was halfway up the stairs. They exchanged glances and ran after him.

Gibbs headed to MTAC; so they came along behind, barely getting inside behind him.

As soon as they were inside, they saw a photograph of a dead man on the screen and another man inset who was very much alive.

"What's going on, Boss?" Tony asked in a low voice.

"Agent Gibbs, DiNozzo and McGee," Vance said. "This is Agent Sandoval from the FBI's Albuquerque office. Would you mind giving them the summary, Agent Sandoval?"

"Not at all, Director Vance. This is Petty Officer First Class John Miller. He was found in the desert on Navajo Nation lands just this morning. The Navajo LEO called the feds when he was ID-ed. He was there with a friend, Petty Officer First Class Robert Natani."

"Is Petty Officer Natani a member of the Navajo Nation?" Vance asked.

"Yes. They actually can't find him."

"Cause of death for PFC Miller?"

"Exsanguination. You can see the injury on the throat."

"Cause?"

"Looks almost like an animal, but not quite. There's something off about it."

"What does the officer say?"

"As little as possible. He was reluctant even to report it, I think. Unless I miss my guess, he knows more than he's saying."

"All right. We'll look into it on our end."

"I've really got a lot on my plate right now, Director. Normally, I'm the liaison with the Navajo Nation in New Mexico, but... seeing as he's one of yours...?"

"We'll take it on."

"Thanks. I'll send you the contact information for Officer Derrick Lapahie. He's a good officer, but he won't say more than he thinks he needs to."

Agent Sandoval signed off. Vance turned to them.

"Agent Gibbs, I want to have someone on hand in New Mexico to figure this out. We have one dead petty officer and another is missing. I'd like to have something to tell their families."

"Actually, only one," Tony pointed out. "If PFC Natani is from that area, his family already knows about him being missing."

"And why is that?" Tim asked. "Why were they out there? If Agent Sandoval was right, why would the officer hide something? Did PFC Natani kill PFC Miller? Or is it something completely different? Something we're not even considering?"

"Those are all good questions, Agent McGee," Vance said. "That's what I want you to find out."

"Right."

"Decide who's going and who's staying, Agent Gibbs."

Gibbs nodded and the three of them left. Gibbs said nothing as they walked down to the bullpen. Tony and Tim exchanged glances and then started making their case.

"Boss? You're not going to send Bishop out there, are you?" Tony asked.

"I know she needs experience and all, but I just don't think that this is the kind of case to send her out for," Tim added.

"We're more than willing to go," Tony said. "We know what to do and you could be here to make sure she doesn't destroy anything."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow. "Who will make sure you two don't destroy anything?"

Tony didn't miss a beat. "We'll keep each other in line, Boss."

The eyebrow moved even higher. There was a heavy pause.

"What are you waiting for?" he asked. "Get going."

"On it, Boss!" they said in unison.

Then, they hurried to the elevator and got on. Once the doors closed, they gave each other a high five.

"Yes! Finally!"

"We'd better not screw this one up," Tim said suddenly. "Gibbs will never let us go anywhere again."

"Sure, he will. But we'd still better not screw up. We meet back here in an hour to make our flight arrangements."

"All right."

"And if there are any horses out there, you're riding them. Not me."

Tim grinned. "No way. No saddle sores for me."

The doors opened and the two men hurried off to get ready to go.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Officer Derrick Lapahie was meeting with the chapter of the remote part of the Navajo Nation where Robbie had grown up.

"There are two NCIS agents on their way to investigate what happened," he said.

"This can't help us."

"I know," Derrick said, "but there's nothing we can do about it. Two Navy men, even if one is only missing..."

"Agent Sandoval understands the way things are. Why is he not investigating?"

Derrick smiled a little. "He doesn't understand, either, but he's part of the FBI, not NCIS. This is a Navy case."

"Robbie should not have brought his friend here. We warned him what was happening."

"Not too many believe that story anymore. Robbie had been gone for a long time."

"It is why we are here at the edge of the world. We are the only Diné who have been entrusted with this task. It has fallen to us through the ages to guard against this happening. Your fathers..."

Derrick nodded.

"It's possible that they'll be satisfied with a preliminary investigation and will let us tie all the loose ends," he said.

In his experience, many of the non-Diné who came to the Rez didn't generally stay long. Tourists were common in some parts of the Navajo Nation, but not here. They were left to themselves.

...except when an outsider was killed. It only added to the problems they always faced.

"When will they arrive?"

"It should be soon."

"We will entrust them to you."

One more nod and Derrick left the room. He got into his truck and went to meet the NCIS agents.

He really hoped they wouldn't stay long.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

"Man, it's hot out here. It's like being under a blow dryer," Tim said. "How long will we stay?"

"Until we figure out what's going on...or Gibbs gives up."

Tim scoffed at that. "Gibbs doesn't give up, not if someone's been killed. Besides, PFC Natani is still missing. He could be alive, maybe hurt out there."

"Or he could be our killer."

"Yeah, but they were supposed to be friends."

"Wouldn't be the first time," Tony said. "Oh, this must be our ride."

A truck pulled up which was labeled Navajo Nation Police. The officer who got out seemed reluctant to approach them. Tim glanced at Tony who just shrugged. Agent Sandoval had suggested that the officer knew more than he'd said, but not that he would have been involved in anything shady. Why wouldn't he want them there?

Still, it wouldn't be the first time people hadn't wanted them around. Sometimes, they were seen as invaders, stepping on sensitive toes, and Tim wouldn't be surprised if that was all this was. They both walked over.

"Officer Lapahie?" Tony asked.

"Yes."

Tony shook hands.

"I'm Agent DiNozzo and this is Agent McGee. We're here from NCIS."

"Yes, I know. You'll want to see the man who was killed. Come with me."

"Thanks."

They got into the truck after tossing their bags into the back and headed over to the morgue where Jack Miller's body was being stored until it could be sent to his family.

"He's right in here," the mortician said. "Cause of death seems pretty obvious."

When he pulled out the body, Tim had to agree. The man's throat looked like it had been ripped out. He wasn't generally squeamish anymore, but this was nasty. There was something about it that just didn't feel right. He couldn't explain what it was. Tony didn't seem bothered.

"How long had he been dead?" Tony asked.

"We found him in the morning. It was kind of cold during the night," Officer Lapahie said.

"He'd been dead at least six hours when he was found," the mortician clarified. "More than that, I can't say for sure. The FBI medical examiner did check him out before you guys got called in. Here's the report she left."

Tony took it and passed it over to Tim. He glanced at it. The pattern of the wounds wasn't exactly right for any conventional animal, like a coyote or a dog. That was a problem, but the alternative was rather gruesome to contemplate because the pattern was definitely from teeth, not a knife.

"All right. Thank you. PFC Miller's family should be in touch to begin arrangements for transferring the body, but it may be a few days while our investigation is going on."

"I can keep him here," the mortician said quickly. "It's no trouble."

"Thanks."

They quickly finished up, taking a few pictures, collecting the effects that had been with him when he was found. Then, Officer Lapahie led them out of the mortuary.

"Officer Lapahie, could you take us to where the body was found?"

"Yes. There won't be much left out there, you know. It's not like a city. Animals will have taken care of whatever was left behind."

"We still need to see where he was killed," Tim said.

"If that's what you want," he said, dismissively.

Tim furrowed his brow at the man. He couldn't figure out why, if he wasn't part of it, the officer would be so reluctant to help. They'd had problems with local LEOs not wanting their help before, but there was something about his stance that screamed that he didn't want them there.

Still, he got in his truck and drove them out into the desert. How he knew where to stop was beyond Tim's ken, but he supposed that, once one got used to the desert, one learned how to identify locations. He was definitely more used to wet climates instead.

It was a few miles out. Tim looked around.

"How did you find him out here?"

"They were missing in the morning," Officer Lapahie said. "Someone had seen them go out in the night and that can be dangerous. So we went out looking."

"Who is we?" Tony asked.

"Me and a few others. We are few out here and we have to stick together to survive. Robbie's parents died when he was young, and there was no one else to look for him but us."

"No other family?"

"A...brother. Older."

"Where was he?"

"He's been...gone for years."

"Where?"

Officer Lapahie shrugged.

"He has gone far astray. It's hard to know where he ended up."

Tim nodded. Even if he couldn't understand a lot of what was going on, he felt like the idea of a family member going off the rails was something he could get.

With practiced ease, he and Tony began to spread out over the area, looking for the precise place where PFC Miller had been found. After a few minutes, Tony gestured to both of them. Tim joined him. A definite sign of a body. The ground was still slightly discolored. The air must have been very still to keep dust from scouring the site.

"Looks like he was here."

Looking slightly impressed, Officer Lapahie nodded.

"That looks right."

"Okay. McGee, photos."

"On it." Tim pulled out the camera, thinking how odd it was that Tony wasn't cracking jokes like he usually did. He was extremely professional and had been ever since they first met Officer Lapahie. He followed Tony's lead, but it definitely felt strange.

They completed their investigation of the immediate area, and then, Tim looked around at the landscape. For a moment, he thought he saw something moving. The shape was wrong, though. He couldn't figure out what it was.

"Hey, look at that!" he said, pointing.

Tony and Officer Lapahie turned, but whatever it was had disappeared.

"What did you see, McGee?"

"I'm not sure. Something moving."

Tony smiled a little. "That's specific."

"I couldn't...tell."

"Probably a coyote," Officer Lapahie said. "They're common out here."

Tim shook his head. "No. It didn't look like that. I don't..."

He took a few steps in that direction.

"Don't wander off. We don't need to be looking for you, too," Officer Lapahie said.

Tim felt himself bristle a little bit at the implication, but Tony just shook his head. Not worth it. He looked off into the desert again. Whatever he'd seen was long gone. He suppressed a sigh and turned back to the truck

After they finished Officer Lapahie drove them to a small house.

"The council has opened this house to you."

"We're not putting anyone out, are we?" Tim asked.

"No. It's been empty. It's small, but we got rid of the snakes and there shouldn't be any way for them to get in. If you'd like to stay off the Rez..." He sounded a bit hopeful.

"No, this will be fine," Tony said.

They got out of the truck and grabbed their bags. As they walked toward the house, a few people were standing there watching them. One of them was really old. His skin was weathered, almost like leather. He wore very simple clothing with a number of necklaces. Tim only noticed him because, unlike the others who were staring, he looked...welcoming. In fact, he winked at Tim from the back of a small knot of people. Tim smiled and then followed Tony into the house.

Inside, it was basically one open room with a couple of cots, a wall where the kitchen was and a door which Tim hoped led to a bathroom.

"We got the water working, and the propane is hooked up; so that you can cook," Officer Lapahie said. "Is there anything else you need?"

"Not for now," Tony said. "Thanks."

Officer Lapahie nodded and then left them alone in the house.

Tony waited until they heard Officer Lapahie drive away. Then, he let out a loud exhalation and sat down on one of the cots.

"Wow. Vance sent us into a big mess," he said.