Previously:

"Why is there someone killing women you know, Tony?"

"I don't know…"

Tony stared at the photograph in Gibbs' hand. He remembered Janet. She was beautiful. He'd met her in a bar, and didn't hesitate to buy her a drink. The relationship had lasted a couple of weeks, before she dumped him to go back to her ex-boyfriend. Tony had been slightly devastated. He had formed quite the attachment to her in the few weeks they'd dated.

"I want to be helping with the case."

"You can't while you're a suspect, DiNozzo."

"This is crap!" Tony shouted, slapping the bars in front of him with his palm. "I didn't kill any of these women! Vance has to believe me! I mean, I was here when Janet was killed!"

"Why didn't you come to me after you realized that the first body was your girlfriend?"

"I don't know what I was thinking—"

"You weren't thinking, DiNozzo! I could have helped you if you had just come to me!"

"I'm sorry, okay! I didn't ask for this to happen!"

"It's happening, whether you like it or not, DiNozzo. Until we clear your for Kyla's murder, you have to stay here. End of story."

"But Boss—"

"Did I stutter, DiNozzo?"

"No, Boss."

Tony lowered his eyes as he turned away from Gibbs, and started to walk back to his cot to sit down.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs said loudly, to get his SFA's attention. Tony stopped, but did not turn around to face him. "We'll figure this out. You have my word." Gibbs waited for a response, and when he didn't get one, he turned and left.

Tony sat down on his cot and ate his pizza in silence.

NCISNCISNCIS

Gibbs sat down at his desk gruffly, setting a fresh cup of coffee on his desk. His talk with DiNozzo hadn't gone like he'd planned. At least he was able to bring the kid some real food. The stuff they fed them down there was crap.

"Gibbs Gibbs Gibbs!" Abby practically screeched as she bolted into the squad room. "I've got a hit on the fingerprints we got off Lt. Knowles."

"Well, who is it, Abbs?"

Abby looked at Tim.

"What?"

"It's in your e-mail."

"Oh, hold on." Tim opened up Abby's e-mail and queued up the files she'd sent. He suddenly froze as the pictures came up on his computer screen. "This isn't funny, Abby." Tim said.

"Am I laughing, Tim?" she retorted.

"Put it on the plasma, McGee!" Gibbs yelled over them both.

"You might just want to come over and look at it—"

"Now!"

Tim hit the button on his keyboard. The image he'd been gaping at appeared on the plasma screen. Everyone got quiet.

"Tony?" Ziva asked, shocked.

"H-his fingerprints were on her neck. I tried to find others! Oh, Gibbs!" Abby threw herself into Gibbs' arms. Gibbs took her by the shoulders and pushed her away from him.

"It's going to be OK, Abbs."

"Agent Gibbs!"

Gibbs looked up to find Director Vance watching from above.

"I want DiNozzo brought back to interrogation, and I want you to escort him."

"Why can't Daniels and Smythe do it?" Gibbs asked.

"Agent DiNozzo has a temper. I would much rather send someone he respects to bring him up, rather than two green agents."

"Understood." Gibbs turned to Tim. "Take Abby down to the Lab, help her calm down, will you?"

Tim nodded and got up. He put an arm around Abby and led her to the elevator.

"Come on, Abbs. We can work downstairs."

"Ziva,"

"I will keep searching, Gibbs."

NCISNCISNCIS

The cell doors clanged again, bringing Tony out of a restless nap. He sat up as the guard led Gibbs over to his cell. This time, the guard did not leave. He took a key from his ring and unlocked the cell door, sliding it to the right.

"You found the killer?" Tony said, jumping up.

"Not exactly," Gibbs said. "Vance wants to see you, in Interrogation room 1."

Tony's heart sank. He honestly thought he was getting out of here.

"What did Abby find?"

"Come on, Tony."

"What did she find!" Tony shouted.

"Stand down!"

Tony calmed himself.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize."

"It's a sign of weakness, I know."

"Come on. Vance will tell you everything."

NCISNCISNCIS

Tony sat down in interrogation, feeling like a common criminal. Gibbs clapped him on the back before retreating to the observation room. Vance came in, moments later, holding a manila file folder. Tony knew the drill. They'd found some new evidence. This was not going to be good.

"How have you been doing, Agent DiNozzo?"

"How am I doing? You've got me in holding like some criminal, accusing me of a murder I didn't commit! I'm just peachy!"

"Calm down, Agent DiNozzo." Vance set down the file and opened the folder. On the top was a picture of Kyra, with bruising on her neck.

"Tell me what you see."

"She's got a black eye, and some bruising on her neck. I took this picture, Director. I was there."

"Can you fathom a guess as to whose prints we found on her neck?"

"Wait a second—you think I—"

"How did your fingerprints get on her neck, in the same place as the bruising from the hands that strangled her!"

"I didn't kill her!" Tony shouted.

"Answer the damn question, Agent DiNozzo. How did your prints get on the victim's neck?"

"I…I didn't kill her," Tony said, almost in a whimper. He couldn't figure out what to say. "I didn't kill any of them."

"You're off the hook for the other two bodies, Agent DiNozzo. Forget about them. I'm concerned about this dead Lieutenant, and why my Agent's fingerprints are on bruises on her neck."

"I…the fight we had… it wasn't in my car. It was in her apartment."

"Tell me what happened," Vance said, his tone getting light.

~Friday Night~

Tony pulled up in front of Kyla's building and turned the car off. Kyla got out of the car and slammed the door. Tony followed her.

"Don't be like that! Come on! Don't walk away from me!"

Kyla turned to him.

"You let that girl hang all over you, and you didn't ONCE even mention that you had a girlfriend! You didn't even ask her to stop! You're a fucking pig!"

Kyla stormed into the building. Tony ran after her and caught the door before it closed and locked him out. He followed her upstairs to her door and went inside the apartment with her.

"I didn't ask for her to hang all over me, and DID try to push her off me, SEVERAL times! You were too busy flirting with that Lance Corporal at the end of the bar to notice!"

Kyla raised her hand to slap him, and Tony grabbed her wrist roughly.

"You're not slapping me again. Calm down before this escalates farther than it has to."

Shaking, Kyla started to calm, and Tony let go of her wrist. Tears started to roll down her cheeks.

"Maybe we aren't right for each other, Tony," Kyla said. "Neither of us are remotely ready to settle into a committed relationship. And don't stand there and tell me that you are, because you'll only be patronizing me."

"Maybe you're right." He took her hands in his and pulled her close to him. "I had fun with you."

"Likewise." She grinned mischievously.

"What are you thinking?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her in to hold her. She looked down between them, and looked back up at Tony.

"The same thing you are, apparently."

Tony grabbed her hand and scooped her up to carry her to the bedroom.

~present day~

"That's it, Director. We had sex, and I left shortly after that. I never saw her again after that night, until Monday morning."

Vance leaned over the desk, a little uncomfortable with saying what he wanted to say out loud for the microphones to hear.

"You're saying that your fingerprints got there during sex?"

"Yeah. She was sleeping when I left her apartment."

"Anyone see you leave?"

"No. Her building has a camera, though. Outside the front entrance. If you requisition the tapes, you'll see me leaving at 2 a.m."

"All right, Agent DiNozzo. I'm going to have you wait in here for me, all right?"

"Yes, sir."

Vance got up and left interrogation. Gibbs was waiting for him. He didn't have to say anything to know he'd been listening in.

"We need to see the security tape from outside Lt. Knowles' building. It might be our way to clearing Agent DiNozzo, and finding the real suspect. Get moving on this, Gibbs. We've been pussyfooting around on this for far too long."

Vance stalked away, leaving Gibbs standing alone in observation. Taking out his phone, he dialed McGee's number. He wanted some answers too… and he intended to get them.

TBC…