Chapter 3

Several hours later they disembarked their aircraft at Chihuahua International Airport. There were two black SUV's waiting to take them to their hotel. As they loaded their luggage into the cars, Gibbs turned to the major.

"How about we go and visityour client straight away?" he suggested. Major Moran looked at him, really wanting to have a shower before starting into their case. He could see the intensity on Gibbs' face so chose not to antagonise him and agreed.

"Sure, why not?" he replied, looking over towards his colleague Lt. Wyler. "Lt. Wyler, would you mind checking me in to the hotel. Agent Gibbs and I are going straight to the police station where Mr. Franks is being held."

"Yes, sir," she replied.

"Eh, Boss?" Tony said, wondering what Gibbs wanted him to do.

"You too, DiNozzo," Gibbs replied, leaving Tony in a quandary. He was assigned to keep an eye on Gibbs and to make sure he stayed out of trouble.

"But Boss…." Tony protested.

"I'll have a lawyer with me, DiNozzo. What trouble can I get into in a police station with a lawyer present?" Gibbs offered by way of consolation. Tony knew he had a point. So he turned to the beautiful Lt. Wyler and offered her one of his trademark smiles. She smiled back at him sweetly. She thought he was cute and was glad to have him to accompany her to the hotel. He opened the passenger door for her and she climbed into the car.

"Okay, Boss, I'll see you later then," Tony said, before starting up the car and driving away.

Gibbs and Major Moran prepared to leave also. Gibbs got into the driver seat without any discussion. Moran was used to reading people and had gathered that Gibbs was a man used to getting his own way, so he was content to let him drive. He sat into the passenger seat and closed the door.

"So, do you know where we're going?" he asked the former Marine.

"The police station," Gibbs replied as a matter of fact. Moran smiled. Perhaps he should have been clearer.

"I mean, do you know how to get there?" he asked. Gibbs looked at him blankly but not wanting to admit that he had no idea. Moran saw this and spoke up. "We could use the Sat Nav," he suggested, reaching across and inputting their destination into the Sat Nav set on the dashboard.

Gibbs watched as the younger man programmed the Sat Nav with ease. Gibbs once again felt like a dinosaur. He and technology didn't mix.

"Okay, just follow the directions," the major told him as Gibbs floored the accelerator. Moran quickly buckled up and tried to act cool as Gibbs gave him a demonstration of his notorious driving skills.

They were quickly out on the open road and on their way to Chihuahua city. There was little in the way of conversation, which made Moran feel uncomfortable. He decided to try and break the ice.

"So, you know this Franks guy pretty well then?" Moran asked out of the blue.

"Yep," Gibbs replied curtly.

"Were you in the Marines together?" Moran ventured a guess.

"Nope," Gibbs replied, still watching the road. Moran sighed. Not the most talkative guy, he thought. I might as well try the direct approach then.

"So how do you know him?" he asked.

"He was my boss when I first joined NIS," Gibbs replied again without expression.

"Right. So you're close then?" Moran pressed.

"You could say that. I owe him," Gibbs elaborated slightly. His words gave Moran cause for concern.

"Okay. Can we just be clear on one thing? I'm his lawyer and it's my job to look after him as my client. I don't want your history, whatever it is, getting in the way," Moran told him.

Gibbs turned towards him and unleashed his steely glare. Moran met his glare and established his own. He wasn't intimidated by Gibbs in the least. He had dealt with hard-nosed Marines throughout his military career. To him, Gibbs was just another in a line of tough military men. Gibbs realised that this JAG lawyer had been around the block once or twice and saw in his eyes that he took his responsibility very seriously. He turned his eyes back towards the road. He had a good feeling about this Marine. He was pretty sure he could trust him to do his best for Mike. Pissing contest out of the way, the two stern men settled in silence for the rest of the journey. Soon they were pulling in to the parking lot of police headquarters in central Chihuahua.

They walked confidently into the building and asked to see Mike Franks. They were met by a senior police officer, Comisario Suarez, and taken into his office. There they made their introductions and exchanged political niceties. Gibbs found the whole parade farcical and impatiently waited as Major Moran spoke in fluent Spanish to the arresting officer. Finally, after Moran received the arrest report and a copy of the charges, they were brought to a room at the back of the station. It had dirty white walls and one barred window close to the ceiling. In the centre of the room stood a table and three plastic chairs. They waited for a few minutes and eventually Mike Franks was led in by an officer. The officer left and locked the door behind him.

"What the hell are you doing here, Probie," Franks asked, seemingly unimpressed by Gibbs arrival.

"Nice to see you too, Mike," Gibbs replied. Franks sat on the remaining chair. He looked at the uniform of the officer sitting across from him.

"JAG?" he asked, slightly surprised by Moran's presence.

"Yeah, Mike. This is Major Charles Moran, JAG Corps," Gibbs said by way of introduction.

"I didn't ask for a JAG lawyer," Franks pointed out.

"Vance thought you needed one," Gibbs replied.

"Hell, I don't need a lawyer, Probie. They've no evidence of anything. You know I didn't do it," Franks told them.

"Well, Mr. Franks, they're charging you with the murder of Pedro Hernandez, who was shot and killed almost twenty years ago. They must have some reason to arrest you," Moran explained.

"Look, Major, I wasn't even in this country when that piece of shit was killed. I was investigating his involvement in a triple homicide in the US. This is a trumped up charge and I have a feeling Senor Hernandez's son is behind it," Franks informed him.

"His son? What makes you think that?" Moran enquired.

"You didn't tell him, Probie?" Franks asked, looking quizzically at Gibbs. Gibbs shrugged his shoulders. "What did you talk about all the way down here?" he asked looking back and forth at the two men. It was obvious to him that conversation didn't exactly flow between the two men sitting opposite him.

"I'll give you the edited version. Eight months ago Agent Gibbs was staying with me in Baja. He disappeared and we discovered that he had been kidnapped by Estella and Raul Hernandez. They almost killed him," Mike explained, before starting to cough. It took a few minutes for him to regain his breath. Gibbs was unable to hide his concern.

"Are you okay, Mike?" Gibbs asked his old friend.

"Fine, it's just the dust in here," Franks replied. "Anyway, to cut a long story short, Estella followed Gibbs back to Washington and she was killed by one of his agents while trying to murder him for the second time. Now I suspect that Raul Hernandez had me arrested in order to lure Gibbs back into the country. You watch your back, Probie," Franks warned, as he tried to quell another cough.

"And why wasn't this Raul Hernandez arrested?" Moran wondered aloud.

"I should have mentioned that Raul Hernandez is a commandante in the state police," Franks informed him.

"That shouldn't matter. Police officers aren't above the law, even in Mexico," Moran replied.

"Yeah, well it's complicated," Franks replied, looking at Gibbs. Gibbs was watching his old friend and his concerns for his health were growing. He knew Franks had been unwell for some time. He had been diagnosed with emphysema and angina while admitted to hospital in Ensenada eight months ago. Juanita, his housekeeper and friend, had told Gibbs about it. Mike had never mentioned it himself.

"How soon can you get him out of here?" Gibbs asked Moran.

"The hearing is set for tomorrow. We'll apply for bail and take it from there," Moran explained.

"Okay," Gibbs replied, frustrated that it couldn't be any sooner. "Can I get you anything, Mike?"

"No, Probie, I'm okay. Just do me a favour," Franks asked.

"Anything," Gibbs replied.

"Watch your six," Franks ordered. Gibbs nodded. He and Franks stood up and hugged briefly with mutual back slaps. Moran realised that this signalled that their chat was over and he wondered what, if anything, had been learned.

"Okay, Mr. Franks. I'll meet you in the morning before the hearing and we'll go through your plea. Goodbye," Moran said, shaking Mike's hand.

The two visitors reluctantly left Mike in police custody. As they walked back to their car, Gibbs turned to Moran.

"You have to get him out tomorrow. You can see that he's not well."

"I noticed his breathing all right. What's wrong with him?" Moran asked.

"He has emphysema and heart problems. He doesn't know that I know and wouldn't want any fuss, but he doesn't need this kind of stress," Gibbs explained.

"I'll do my best. It's not going to be a slam dunk though. It will depend on the magistrate," Moran reminded him. Gibbs nodded, knowing whatever happened was out of their hands.

They returned to the hotel. Tony and Lt. Wyler were in the bar waiting for Gibbs and Moran to return. Tony waved over to them as they entered the bar. Beneath the surface he was very relieved that Gibbs was back and everything was as it should be.

"So, Boss, how's Franks doing?" Tony asked, as he waved to get the barman's attention.

"Okay, I guess," Gibbs replied. "Bourbon," he said to the waiting barman."

"Just a coke for me thanks," Moran said as the bar tender waited to take his order. "Have you eaten yet?"

"No, sir," Lt. Wyler replied.

"Good, I'm starving," Moran said. "How about we eat and then you and I can go through our case?"

"Absolutely," she replied. "Will you join us?" she asked Tony and Gibbs.

"Why not? We have to eat, right, Boss?" Tony said specifically to Gibbs.

Gibbs nodded. He surreptitiously rubbed his brow. He could feel the beginning of a migraine coming on. He suffered from them occasionally, ever since he was beaten to within an inch of his life by the Hernandez siblings. He asked Tony for the key to their room and excused himself for a few moments under the pretext that he wanted to freshen up. In truth, he knew he was going to need the painkillers he had packed in his bag. He didn't want to concern Tony because ever since he had been injured, his team had watched him closely and he knew they worried about him. He threw the bourbon down his throat and left the trio in the bar.

He took the elevator and found his room. He turned on the light and closed the door behind him. Finding his bag left on one of the twin beds, he opened it and removed the bottle of pills. He took a bottle of water from the mini-bar and swallowed two of the pills. He removed his jacket and entered the bathroom and splashed some cold water onto his face. He went back out to the bedroom area and lay on the bed for a minute. The throbbing behind his eyes was getting worse. He turned off the light and massaged his temples, hoping it would help ease the pain. He closed his eyes and tried to relax.

He woke with a start when Tony entered the room and turned on the light. He stood over the bed, looking down at Gibbs, unable to mask his concern.

"Boss, are you okay? You've been up here for ages," Tony asked straight out.

"Lights, Tony," Gibbs said, shielding his eyes from the piercing glare.

"Migraine?" Tony asked, as he reached and switched off the main light.

Gibbs nodded. The movement of his head only acted to remind him of the ache.

"You stay here, Boss. I'll bring you up some dinner," Tony offered kindly.

"Not hungry, DiNozzo. You go ahead," Gibbs said, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"I'll be back soon," Tony said, leaving Gibbs to try and get some sleep. He knew that rest usually helped his boss when he had an attack of migraine.

Tony returned back downstairs and explained to the two JAG officers that Gibbs was resting. They ordered their meals and in the course of their conversations, Tony relayed to them the whole story of Gibbs' torture and trauma at the hands of Estella and Raul Hernandez.

"So that's why Franks kept telling Gibbs to watch his back. Do you really think he'll come after him?" Moran asked with a note of trepidation evident in his question.

"My director seems to think so. He is of the opinion that Franks' arrest is purely a ploy to lure Gibbs back to Mexico. What he plans to do is anyone's guess," Tony informed him.

They finished up their food and Tony asked the waiter for a plate to bring up to the room for Gibbs. He kindly arranged it and Tony returned to his room, plate of food in hand. When he entered the lights were out and the only sound was the soft nasal breathing of his boss, fast asleep. Tony tiptoed around the room and put the plate down on the dresser. Suddenly Gibbs sat bolt upright and in one swift movement had his weapon out from under his pillow and aimed at DiNozzo.

"Boss, Boss, it's me," Tony said in a stricken voice, quickly putting his hands in the air.

Gibbs flicked the lamp switch near him and saw the horror stricken face of his senior agent.

"Damn it, DiNozzo! Don't sneak around like that!" he yelled, having frightened himself at how close he came to shooting his protégé.

"Sorry, Boss. I didn't want to wake you," Tony said apologetically. "I brought you up some dinner."

Gibbs swung his legs off the bed and stood up stiffly, stretching his back, watched closely by DiNozzo.

"Are you feeling better?" Tony asked, not really expecting an answer. Gibbs offered a slight nod in reply and walked over and removed the cover from the plate. He picked up a French fry and began to eat. Then he realised just how hungry he was. Tony turned on the TV and removed his shoes and made himself comfortable on his bed. Gibbs took his dinner to his bed and he too sat with his back against the headboard and watched television. They watched a Spanish-dubbed Die Hard movie, with Tony deriving great amusement from watching Bruce Willis cursing in Spanish.

They chilled out for the rest of the night, with Gibbs' thoughts turning to Franks and what would become of him at the hearing tomorrow. He found it difficult to sleep again that night. Eventually he dozed on and off, but meaningful sleep evaded him that night.

A/N - would still love to hear what you think so far. Thanks to everyone who reviewed so far and those who have taken the time to read and add alerts also.