Event Two
"Special Agent McGee." Tim cradled the phone between his right ear and shoulder as he continued to type up a report on his computer. The incident from early that morning was long forgotten.
"Agent McGee? I'm Special Agent Adrian Fisher. I'm with the FBI." Tim held in a snort at the formal tone.
"How can I help you, Agent Fisher? It's not often I get calls directly. You guys mostly go through Gibbs or DiNozzo." Tim asked with half his attention.
"Is the rest of your team there?"
"Not currently. They're following up a possible lead for a cold case of ours. Unfortunately it required them to go out on a ship so I had to remain behind. I am more useful here at the Yard than out on a ship, constantly getting sea sick." Tim hit save on his report before bringing up the search program he had running for Tony.
"Good. Th...wait, what? You get sea sick and yet you work for NCIS?" Tim really did let out a snort this time. It was always fun to throw agents from other agencies through a loop.
"It's a long story, Agent Fisher, that I have a feeling neither of us have time for me to tell. What was it that you needed?" It took a few seconds for Fisher to regain his composure on the other end of the line.
"Good. That means you can speak freely." Tim paused mid-word in his typing.
"Yes..." He confirmed hesitantly.
"Agent McGee, I'm with a task force directed to work on the on-going mafia problem on the east coast. Do you know about us?"
"Yes, I've heard of you. I've actually worked with you all quite extensively. I came in as a consult during the O'Shea raid just last month." Tim turned his full attention to the conversation. If they needed more help they would have sent the request via email. The fact that one of them was calling wasn't good news.
"I know. An ally family of the O'Shea's, the Lambert's, unfortunately also know this. They've ordered a hit on your head." The rest of the world went quiet as Tim's heart seemed to stop beating.
"Is that right?" He croaked out rhetorically. Of course it was correct. The FBI wouldn't joke about something like that.
"Yes, Agent McGee. You are one of only five agents who have been privy to every branch of this operation. Along with your status as a white hat hacker and participation inmultiple projects that affect national security, you can understand why their request includes that you are to be captured alive if possible. Our primary concern here at the Bureau is not only to keep you alive but also out of their hands." Tim's head dropped down in resignation. He ran his free hand through his hair as he processed the situation that was suddenly thrust in his lap. Tim suddenly wished the others would return from their trip already.
"Wha...what do you guys have in mind?"
"Call one of your team mates. Say you are going to double check some information from your case. List off some place that may take you a little while to investigate. Then simply leave and come to the Hoover Building." Confusion popped up in Tim's mind for a few seconds before he realized what Agent Fisher was suggesting.
"You...you want me to go into witness protection?" He asked incredulously, keeping his voice low so anybody passing by didn't hear him. Fisher's tone changed from formal to understanding.
"We've already started the process, actually. Your security cameras are currently experiencing some issues at the moment. There will be no visual or audio record of your half of this conversation." Tim's head snapped back up to look at the camera across the room that looked him straight on. The red light was off. The technicians at the FBI managed to get past the fire wall he installed in the Yard's security system.
"Agent Fisher, I can't just suddenly drop everything and disappear. My team mates will know something is up."
"Not if they think you're dead." That hit Tim like a blow to the stomach.
"What?" He hissed.
"Agent McGee, when you arrive we'll commandeer your vehicle and stage for an 'accident' to happen. They'll find your car at the bottom of the Potomac, evidence that you were in the car when it went in, but they won't find you. The ice cover on the river will keep them from doing a proper search for your body until Spring, by which time you'll be expected to have been washed into the Atlantic."
"You just have everything covered, don't you Agent Fisher?" Tim asked sarcastically as he took a few deep breaths, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Yes, we do, Agent McGee. Now call your team mates on your cell and tell them you'll be leaving the Yard. I'll remain on the line." Tim swallowed hard when the taste of bile crept up his throat. He realized that he couldn't argue this. It was decided for him the moment that hit was placed. Tim set the phone to lay on his desk while he pulled out his cell and dialed Tony. It didn't take long for his partner to answer.
"Probie-wan Kenobi! It's like you're psychic. I was just about to call you for an update on that search I asked you to do." Tim let out a laugh as tears suddenly formed in his eyes. This was the last he was going to hear from anyone on the team. He was glad it was Tony.
"That's actually part of the reason why I called. I still haven't found anything new. The search could take a while to finish with all the extra details I'm having it do so you guys may be back by the time it finishes."
"Darn. Alright, no biggie. We're not getting far with the crew here but Gibbs wants us stay through lunch. We'll be back around two." Tim's eyes flew to the time on his computer. Nearly noon. His car will most likely be at the bottom of the Potomac by then. "What was the other thing you were calling about? Did Abby sneak in and you're calling to tattle on her?"
"No, Abby is still at home with the flu. Even she wouldn't risk spreading those germs. No, I'm calling to say that I'm gonna go cross check some of our information with public records while I have the time. A paper trail is harder to erase than a virtual one."
"Right on. I understand why you called me instead of Gibbs, then. He wouldn't understand the difference. And hey, you just gave me an idea. Ziva!" Tim could hear Tony pull his cell away from his ear and yell at their third team member to go check the paper records that were held on the ship. He wiped away the few tears falling down his face as Ziva's normally melodious voice screeched back at Tony in their normal banter fashion before Tony returned to the phone conversation. "Good idea there, McSneaky. If we find anything new it'll be in the paper trail. That all?"
"Yep. The update on your search and to tell you that I may not be here when you get back. Lord only knows how many boxes I'll have to search through." Tim smiled slightly as Tony groaned at the thought.
"I certainly don't envy you. Well, talk to you later, Probie."
"Talk to you later, Tony." Tim said good bye with the most ironic farewell ever and now he was suddenly thinking of all the things he never got to tell any of the others.
"Oh, and Tim?" Tony cut off his train of thought.
"Yeah?"
"Be careful driving on those roads, ok? I hit a patch of black ice on the way to work this morning and nearly drove my way into a tree, even with the roads salted. So drive even more grandmotherly than you usually do. Got it?" Tony's voice was filled with concern that the boisterous man rarely showed, telling Tim that Tony was serious about him being careful. It was the same tone Tim always used when he was telling Sarah to be careful. The one an older brother used on his younger sibling.
"Yeah, Tony, I got it. Bye." Tim barely managed to get out with a tone of mock-irritation at Tony's crack about his driving.
"Bye." With that single word, Tim's final connection to his team members was cut off. It took every fiber of his being to set his cell phone down and pick up his desk phone.
"It's done, Agent Fisher. They won't be surprised if I'm not here when they get back around two." Tim reported.
"That's good, Agent McGee. Now hang up, collect your things as usual, and come here. Agent Rocco will be waiting for you at the main entrance." Tim hung up as ordered, glad to finally cut off that particular conversation. Eying the still dormant security camera he stood up and started preparing to leave the Yard. With his badge, gun, and cellphone in place and his winter coat tightly wrapped around him, Tim plucked his car keys from his desk drawer and headed to the elevator.
A few minutes later, Tim sat in his car staring up at the office building a short distance out of the parking lot. He had worked his ass off to get here. Survived FLETC and endured heckling at Norfolk, all to get what he had here at the Navy Yard. A place on the top MCRT in the agency. All it took was the ring of a phone to take it away from him. Shaking his head at the unfairness of it all, Tim thought back to the phone conversation he had with Tony not ten minutes previous. 'Be careful driving on those roads, ok?' A sob erupted from his throat as Tim finally let the tears escape his eyes. It was almost like the cosmos were mocking him. Tim knew that once the others were told about his car being identified as the one that crashed into the Potomac Tony would think back to that very sentence.
It was almost cruel to call Tony, now that Tim thought about it. The man had turned into a brother to him in any way that mattered, had even spent time with him and Sarah during their off weekends. It was obvious to everyone at the Yard, even Jimmy, that Tony was slowly breaking away from Gibbs and was connecting to Tim. The two of them had survived a lot together. Kate's death, the hunt for Ari, Gibbs leaving, Gibbs returning, Sheppard's death, the team being broken up, Ziva leaving, Ziva's 'death' and her rescue. Tim had even told Tony that the only agent he would ever be the Senior Field Agent for was Tony, himself. So to make Tony think that he was the last person Tim spoke with before the 'accident' had to be beyond cruel. But Tim wanted to hear his 'brother's' voice one last time. Growling in anger at the situation, Tim restarted his car and continued on to the Hoover Building. He made it a point not to look back.
"Come on, Probie. Checking public records, even by yourself, shouldn't take this long." Tony glanced at his watch again, biting his lip. It was now nearly five PM. McGee's search engine still hadn't garnered any new results so Gibbs hadn't said anything about his absence yet but it was obvious that Gibbs was getting restless.
"Have you tried to call him, Tony?" Ziva asked without looking up from her computer.
"Yes, Zee-va." Tony replied sarcastically. "But he hasn't answered. And he won't until he's done because all the paper copies of public records are stored in the basement of the office building. He's not going to get a signal down there."
"It was just a question." Ziva hissed back. Rolling his eyes, Tony spun his chair so he could face the television screen and turned it on to check the weather. If things looked like they were going to get bad he was going to go collect McGee, himself.
"That's right, Aaron! We've lucked out. No more snow due until the end of the week. But Mother Nature seems to be making up for it by dropping the temperature down a few more degrees than what we've been experiencing. It's not too much of a drop to worry about but you may want to add an extra layer when you're bundling up."
"We'll be sure to do that. Thanks, Danika. Now, viewers, we're just getting word from a reporter on the street that Metro is currently in the middle of fishing a car out of the Potomac. It apparently lost control on a patch of black ice while crossing over and slammed through the side barrier some time around noon. Only recently have they managed to find the car on the bottom of the river and got the necessary equipment to pull it out. There is no news about the driver. Care to add to that, Ian?" Ziva pulled away from her computer to watch with Tony, both of them mildly surprised that a car could break through the side barrier on a bridge. The view on the television switched from the station studio to a field reporter standing on the bank of the Potomac with police and rescue officers working in the background around a large hole in the ice.
"There isn't anything to add to that at this moment, Aaron. Like you said, not much is known about the car or the driver. Police aren't giving up much information at this time. And wait, wait, wait. It looks like they have finally got the car to the surface." The reporter turned to face the rescue workers, the camera man panning to put more focus on the rescue effort. A shiny silver was the first eye-catching detail of the car to show. "Aaron, it looks like the car is a Porsche Boxster. Not a car you want to lose in an accident like this."
All the color in Tony's face drained away as he watched the Porsche be lifted higher and higher by the crane before eventually being set on the bridge just next to the gap it caused in the barrier. Ziva remained expressionless, refusing to react until they found out the identity of the driver. Neither noticed Fornell and Sacks exit the elevator behind them.
"Ok, Officer Miller was kind enough to join us here. Officer, is there anything you can tell us about the accident?" The reporter turned his attention to the burly man in uniform next to him.
"I am unable to divulge any information about the driver at this time, but I can confirm that the driver was in the vehicle when it entered the water. Divers reported that the driver's side window was smashed from the inside and that the driver's side seat belt was cut in a deliberate fashion, most likely in response to the buckling mechanism being crushed and unable to function. There is, however, no evidence to suggest that the driver made it out of the water." Gibbs had since entered the Bull Pen from the other elevator, giving Fornell a look before turning his attention to the screen that had Tony and Ziva so captivated. He recognized the car as the same type that McGee drove.
"What they're failing to report is that the divers brought up the few personal items they found in the car." Fornell spoke up. Tony and Ziva jumped, spinning around to face the FBI agents. Gibbs' rose an eyebrow in question but it was Tony who actually responded.
"What are you talking about, Fornell? How would you know anything about it?" The older agent tossed a plastic evidence bag at Tony who promptly caught it before it hit his face.
"We were called in when they found that." Tony turned his attention to the bag and came face to face with a hunk of gold colored metal and a white rectangle. Tony felt like he had taken a dunk in the Potomac, himself, when he recognized what he was looking at. McGee's photo and badge number glimmered at him almost innocently beneath the plastic.
"No." He immediately snapped in denial, tossing the bag back at Fornell. "No way in hell."
"What is it?" Ziva asked. Tony just shook his head, not removing his eyes from the FBI agent before him. His fists clenched as he tried to maintain composure. He refused to believe that he had just watched his best friend's car, his brother's car, be fished out of the Potomac. Fornell sighed as he made the few steps to hand the bag to Gibbs.
"McGee's cell phone, badge, ID, and weapon were retrieved from the vehicle an hour ago. When it became clear that a federal agent was involved in the accident Metro was more than happy to hand it over to us. We went to the scene to confirm their findings before coming here to...to break the news in person." Fornell faltered slightly. Both he and Sacks were visibly broken up about the news they were delivering. Tim was well liked through out the various agencies, even by those that butted heads with NCIS. He just had that type of personality.
"McGee never made it out of the river." Sacks finished for Fornell when it became clear the older man couldn't speak any more. The room went silent as those working near by, gossiping about the accident, put two and two together when they overheard Sacks and realized that McGee was the driver. Sacks shook his head as he turned his focus on Tony, knowing who would be affected by this the most. "I am so sorry, DiNozzo."
"No!" Tony snapped, returning to his desk and snatching his phone. A glance at his note pad had him dialing the public records office. After a few rings an elderly sounding woman answered. "Hello, this is Special Agent Tony DiNozzo with NCIS."
"Hello, Agent DiNozzo. How could I help you?" The woman asked pleasantly. Having federal agents call seemed to be pretty normal for her.
"I was wondering if you could tell me when my partner, Special Agent Timothy McGee, arrived. He was going to check over some information for a case of ours and he hasn't returned yet. He loses track of the time pretty often." Tony's free hand began to rub at his temple as he desperately wished for her to confirm that Tim was searching away in the basement.
"Hmmm...our check in list for today includes a couple agents but none of them are named Timothy McGee. Was this the first place your partner planned on visiting today?"
"Just there." Tony replied with the beginnings of a frown. "Thanks for your help, ma'am. There is one other place he could have meant. He probably went there."
"Well, I hope you find him! Have a nice evening, Agent DiNozzo." Tony's phone entered its cradle with a small click as he hung up.
"Is there any hope of retrieving his body?" Gibbs finally spoke up, eying Tony as the younger man leaned forward onto his desk with his head in his hands.
"Not until Spring, Jethro." Fornell answered. "It's especially cold this Winter. With the river frozen over, the rescue and recovery crew can't access enough of the river to properly look for him."
"Surely there is some way to look for him." Ziva insisted.
"There isn't, Zee." Tony whispered before either of the FBI agents could answer her. He hadn't even lifted his head. "The water is too cold for them to stay in it long enough to possibly find him. We...we had something similar happen in Baltimore. The...the body was never found."
Ziva's face finally started to drain of color as the reality of the situation sank in for her, the desert rat of the team. She reached for Tony's desk to lean on it, losing the ability to stand upright. Gibbs lightly turned the bag in his hands over and over to look at its contents. Four waterlogged items summed up the last moments of Timothy McGee's life.
"When do you plan on telling his sister?" Gibbs asked Fornell. Sarah would be devastated.
"Considering that it's McGee we're talking about, Jethro, it's probably best you do it. She won't appreciate the news coming from someone she doesn't know."
"I'll do it." Tony finally lifted his head, tear streaks clear on his face. New ones formed as fast as he could wipe them away. "Sarah...she's expecting me, tonight. She's expecting me and McGee. We are...were going to be helping her move from her dorm to an apartment off campus. I guess those plans are changing..."
"Tony, are you sure...?" Ziva started to ask.
"I am." He interrupted quickly. "I made a promise. Tim asked me to take care of Sarah should anything happen to him and I promised I would. I should be the one to tell her."
The others watched on with solemn looks on their faces as Ziva reached out with her free hand to lightly grab Tony's shoulder. After swallowing hard he finally looked up at her, both sets of eyes glimmering in the florescence lighting. It was plain to see that Ziva wanted to reach out with both hands, but needed the one to keep herself upright.
"We both will watch over Sarah." Ziva insisted. "Mc...Tim was the first one to welcome me to the US, despite how I came to be here. I owe him. Both of us will take care of her."
Tony nodded lightly, afraid to verbalize anything lest he completely break down. Gibbs set the evidence bag of McGee's things down on McGee's desk, where they rightfully belonged, and motioned to Fornell and Sacks to follow him up to the Director's office. As he lead the way up the steps he slowly counted down in his head. By the time the three of them reached the top, and Gibbs had reached one, dual sobs echoed up from behind them. Gibbs paused to look back, just in time to see Ziva forgo holding herself up and throw herself into Tony's expectant arms as the two of them finally let themselves be overwhelmed by their emotions. Other agents in the area remained silent, the scene in front of them a rare sight and one to be taken seriously. Clenching his fists closed, Gibbs turned away from his two remaining agents – a thought he mentally head slapped himself for accepting so quickly – and continued to lead the way to Vance's office.
Hidden beneath the sorrowful sound of Tony and Ziva's mourning, an unheard whisper came from McGee's work area. "Everything will be OK. You'll see..."