Disclaimer- I guess I forgot on the last chapter but the only things I own as part of this story are the criminals.
In this story Jenny never died and she remained director of NCIS.
WARNING- OOC Gibbs. Spoiler for Season 3 Episode 1 Kill Ari Part 1
Gibbs had been in the office for 12 hours now. He ran out of places to check and people to talk to for now. Pvt. Jones had worked in a pay role office, by himself with no family at home, and was killed by Sgt. Michaels because he stopped embezzling from officer paychecks. Case closed no witness just physical evidence. Sgt. Michaels had no family to get pissed at him getting arrested or so he thought. God what was wrong with him, he should have checked himself.
He paced through the office going through everything they had learned while actually solving the case. Ziva looked up from the file and Gibbs saw the ragged tired look in her eyes. Gibbs looked around and saw the same look in the rest of his team. "Go home guys. It's getting late."
"You gonna be okay Boss?" McGee asked "I know you and Abby are close."
"Go home McGee."
"Yes Boss."
Gibbs stayed after for several more hours before Jen came in and ordered him home. When he got there he realized he didn't even check his home phone for messages when he woke up but there was several. All from Abby, he quickly hit play. "Hey Gibbs I have some unexpected news. Please call me back, bye." And many more like that until the last one. "Since you won't call me back, I'll just tell you. I'm pregnant."
He stumbled to the couch and plopped down. God Abby and his baby, a baby he didn't even know existed, were in harm's way. For the first time in a long time he sat down and cried. All the things that happened just crashed onto him. Waves of horror and self-revulsion followed suit. He called Ducky.
"Jethro this is not you are you okay?"
"She's pregnant Ducky."
"That's very unfortunate considering the situation but what does that have to do with you?"
"It's mine Ducky."
Ducky was silent for a while as Gibbs wallowed in self-misery. When Ducky finally said something he was in full doctor mode. "Get some sleep Jethro. I know you won't take time off to help yourself but you need your sleep." With that Ducky hung up the phone and Gibbs was forced to actually attempt to fall asleep.
Gibbs walked into the NCIS building excited to see Abby. What he got was a load of sad faces all dressed in black. He looked down and saw he too was wearing black. He followed behind the rest of the team wondering where Abby was. He disliked funerals but Abby always got him through it. When he didn't see her he assumed it was someone she knew too well to attend the funeral. He sat in the church for hours through the wake the communion and finally the burial. He never did figure out whose funeral it was until he saw the grave stones.
Abigail Sciuto
September 18, 1984 – July 27, 2011
Beloved friend and girlfriend
Matthew Leroy Gibbs
?-July 27, 2011
Only memories you had were nightmares.
This sent Gibbs reeling all the memories he and Abby had. Like home movies he watched as a song that Abby used to listen to played in the background.
I have to block out thoughts of you so I don't lose my head
They crawl in like a cockroach leaving babies in my bed
Dropping little reels of tape to remind me that I'm alone
Playing movies in my head that make a porno feel like home
There's a burning in my pride, a nervous bleeding in my brain
An ounce of peace is all I want for you. Will you never call again...
More and more memories passed until one stopped. After Ari shot into her lab. "I'll protect you Abby I promise." He failed her. He promised to protect her and he didn't.
His mind then flashed to different possibilities. All of them ended in his eventual failure and Abby's death. Her getting raped and murdered. Him getting the records destroyed and her still dying. Him across the room from the bastard his gun pointed at the faceless bastard while the kidnapper had a gun to Abby's with him pulling the trigger before Gibbs could shoot. Picture after picture of Abby's death played. Then one of his son lying dead on the pavement.
Gibbs bolted out of bed a cry of pain knowing those nightmares could be all too real for Abby. He looked at the clock and saw 0200 on his clock. Well 2 AM or not he was not getting back to bed tonight and he was in no right mind to work on his boat. He threw on a pair of sweats and went out the door, running harder and faster than he ever did in his life. By 4 AM he was home pouring through Sgt. Michael's financial records then hit him like a slap to the face. There was a third accomplice and he was holding Abby hostage. Due to the fact he hadn't given them a time limit on when to destroy the evidence either made him really sloppy or sadistic and arrogant. Gibbs was sure it was the latter knowing full well that finding out who stole her from him would keep her there longer. He had to do it but he hated himself for it.