Chapter 4:
Prudence and the team had worked until the late hours of the night and found only a handful of folders that could be useful. At this point the whole team was ready to fall asleep right on the desk and/or ground.
Gibbs yawned a bit and setting down his glasses, he rubbed his eyes. "Alright. We'll finish this up tomorrow. Let's go get some rest or we won't be worth a damn in the morning."
Prue and Ziva got up and went into their room to change and then let Tony and McGee come in. The girls took the bottom bunks, as they were softer and easier to get in and out of. Reluctantly Tony and Tim took the top, and before long all four of them were asleep.
Gibbs was also out like a light, and happy to have gotten a room to himself. 'The perks of leadership,' he thought to himself with a smile. The men and women's peaceful slumber was soon to be rudely awakened by the blast of a horn. Gibbs was the only one who slept through the sailors awakening call. The others all woke up immediately with a gasp.
Groaning, Prue sat up, her legs overlapping the edge of the cot. "What the hell is going on?" she asked, still partially asleep.
Tony shoved the pillow over his head, trying to block out the loud sound of men's feet and voices outside the doors. "It's the rooster telling the farm boys to get up and work the farm," he said into the pillow.
Ziva groaned and turned over, also placing the pillow firmly over her head. This was one thing she hated most about spending the night on a ship.
McGee just sat there with a scowl on his face and the covers over his head.
Prue sighed and lied back down after the noise finally ceased. "Can I please kill that rooster?"
Once again the four went back to sleep but in pattern they were woken up again. This time it wasn't an animal that killed their sleep it was Gibbs. "Come on. Get up, get dressed, eat and then find me. I'll give you your orders for the day," he said and shut the door behind him. Saluting a few of the sailors as he walked by them, he entered the General's office.
Tony sighed as he placed his feet on the cold ground. "Is it just me or does Gibbs turn into a Marine again when he's surrounded by them."
McGee had gotten dressed already and looked over to Tony saying, "Gibbs has always been a Marine, he just shows it more so here than at NCIS."
Nodding, Ziva grabbed her clothes and followed Prue who had gone to the door. "Is anyone out there?" she asked the woman who was peeking outside the door.
Prue opened it more and shook her head. "No. It's ok," she replied and stepped into the hallway with Ziva right behind her. Yesterday they had made a deal that since the girls were able to go to sleep and change in the room first, that the guys would be able to do the same in the morning. Quietly the girls sprinted down the way towards the room they had worked in all night. Relieved, they entered it and changed there. Although they wanted to take a shower, there was no way in hell they were going to take a chance of going into the wrong place to do so and being humiliated in front of a large population of male sailors.
Tim, Tony, Ziva, and Prue all found the food and ate quickly before finding Gibbs out on the railing that overlooked the runway of the deck of the ship.
Gibbs gave Ziva the job of investigating the women on the ship, Tony, the men, McGee, the computer geeks, and said that he would be talking with anyone he feels could be connected. The three agents set off to do what they were told, leaving the annoyed and slightly ticked off looking Prue standing next in front of Gibbs.
"So what am I supposed to do?" she asked, her arms crossed. Prue didn't want to be left out in the first place but she couldn't stand having nothing to do. It was definitely not like her.
Gibbs opened the door and ushered her inside. "You're coming with me," he stated.
"Ok. Care to elaborate?" Prue asked as she was being guided through the tight halls by Gibbs' hand on her back.
Gibbs couldn't do much but tell her flat out. "You might have helped us get some files sorted and some rest, but you're not out of the equation quite yet."
Stopping in front of a door, she was slightly pushed inside and then looked back to Gibbs who had just shut the door. This left the two of them in the small room that withheld a table and two chairs that faced each other from across the table. "Ok, what's going on?" she asked a bit confused. Although she had a feeling on what the answer would be, she hoped it was wrong.
Gibbs pulled out a chair for Prue to sit down in and then looked at her. "You knew the suspect therefore you too are still a suspect. Now sit," he said sternly.
Prue closed her eyes for only a second before dropping down onto the metal chair. She eyed Gibbs as he made his way over to the chair in front of her and sat down. 'These guys seem like they know what they're doing. One slip up or the least bit of suspicion, and me and my sisters are dead once again. And it'll be my fault,' she thought fearfully to herself. All of a sudden, she was beginning to find these allied agents, as her enemies.
