Gibbs heard the sirens as the ambulance sped up through the parking garage, but he didn't feel relieved. Tony hadn't woken up yet, he hadn't responded. Gibbs was worried that Tony had a brain injury, because that was the only thing he could think of right then that would explain the blood leaking from Tony's ear.

"Gibbs?" Vance called. "Gibbs, I need you to give the paramedics some room to work. Agent DiNozzo's life depends on that help."

Gibbs looked up at his boss, worry and fear evident on his face. Slowly, he let go of Tony's hand and stood, with help from Vance to keep him steady.

"What if they can't help him?" whispered Gibbs.

"They'll help him, Gibbs. Just give them a chance," Vance answered softly, knowing that the relationship between Gibbs and Tony was more than just a professional one.

"I'm going to kill her. How the hell could she ever do something like this? Tony is supposed to be her friend."

"Don't think about her. I'll deal with Ziva David. You need to focus on your agent. He's going to need you when he wakes up."

Gibbs shook his head. "I don't care what happens to her, Leon. I want her charged with assault."

"I understand, Gibbs. I'll do what I can, but it's up to the FBI in the end."

"Fornell..."

"I was already planning to call him, Gibbs." Vance noticed that the medics were standing impatiently near the ambulance. "Go with them, Gibbs. McGee and I have things covered on this end."

Gibbs sobbed quietly in the waiting room of Bethesda's ER. He had been grateful to find that Brad was already in the emergency department when the ambulance arrived, and whatever he had been doing had been dropped the moment he spotted Tony being wheeled in. Brad had given Gibbs a promise to keep Tony alive, but since he wasn't a neurologist, there wasn't much he could do. Tony's lungs were coping well, and his skills weren't really required this time. What he did need was surgery, and Gibbs had just blindly agreed to let them do whatever was needed.

"Jethro?" asked Ducky, breaking into Gibbs' pain-filled thoughts.

"How is he, Duck?" Gibbs asked, knowing that Ducky would have already checked in with the neurologist and the orthopedic surgeon that were currently operating on Tony.

"Anthony is doing as well as can be expected right now. The neurologist said to tell you that there is no permanent damage to his brain, but he most likely will have some temporary damage while he's recovering. The blood you spotted leaking from his ear is not major- he may have some temporary hearing loss when he wakes while the damaged part of his ear recovers."

"What other injuries are there, Duck?" Gibbs asked, just barely keeping himself together.

"He has several cracked and bruised ribs. The orthopedist is repairing a break in his left arm."

"There's more, right? You should have seen him, Ducky- he looked like a giant bruise when we were in the ambulance."

"He has two fractures in his left hand- most likely a defensive injury along with his broken arm. His left shoulder was dislocated, but has now been put back into place. It'll probably be painful for a few days."

"Is Tony going to wake up?" asked a very distraught Abby.

Looking up, Gibbs beckoned his favourite scientist over and let her hug him while Ducky spoke.

"Anthony is a very tough young man. He didn't let the plague kill him, so I don't see any reason why he would allow these injuries to be his undoing. He will wake up once he is ready to wake up. You need to keep faith in him, and be there when you aren't at work. Give him the love and support he needs from you. Anthony won't leave the people he loves."

"He won't trust us anymore," said Abby sadly. "Tony doesn't trust people easily to begin with, but now... He trusted Ziva to watch his back, and she stabbed him instead."

"He'll learn to trust us again, Abbs," said Gibbs, though he agreed with her assessment of the situation. "We'll be there to help him."

Abby nodded. Her heart had broken the moment McGee had told her what had happened- Tony was her big brother, and nobody else could ever have a relationship as close as that with her. She had vowed to protect Tony as she drove to the hospital, and to protect what was left of his trust in people.

Brad watched the surgery with a heavy heart. Tony had been a healthy, happy person before this had happened. Brad had seen Tony for his annual physical just a week earlier, and he had happily proclaimed Tony to be in perfect health, despite his scarred lungs that hardly ever seemed to pose a problem. But now, Tony was literally clinging to life by a thread. His body was too damaged for any real hope of recovery, although everyone agreed that they would love for Tony to prove them wrong and return to his normal lifestyle.

"Come on, Tony," Brad said quietly as he watched the neurologist finish stitching up the large incision she had made on the side of Tony's head. "Prove us wrong, pal. Show us that you are strong enough to get through this."