Chapter Break

Tony didn't know whose room he was occupying, but it had a bed and a nightstand and it was warm and dark. He lay on top of the covers trying to get comfortable, but instead of falling to sleep, he was left to think about certain thoughts he couldn't seem to shake. They were disturbing thoughts, murderous thoughts, and they were always just out of reach.

He would have these so-called dreams, where the rage inside him would grow, and he could see that it was a man who was the source of all his fury, but he could never make out his face. As he lay there, he began to realize that this man evoked such anger and hatred inside him that the feelings alone should have been enough to wake him, but they never did. The strange part was he could never fully identify the man. His features always seemed to be just blurred enough or shadowed enough so that he couldn't make out who he was, but there was something about him that made him realize that he knew the man. And there was one thing for sure that he was beginning to understand. The kind of anger he was feeling was getting harder and harder to control. These murderous sentiments were building up inside him, and if he wasn't careful, somebody was going to end up dead.

Gibbs looked at his watch and debated. At six o'clock, he decided it was time, and he knocked on Tony's door. He had checked on him twice during the night and each time he was restless, like he was having some sort of muted nightmare. He pushed the door open and seeing Tony sprawled across the bed, he quickly realized that he'd slept through his alarm.

"Hey, DiNozzo. Wake up."

Tony stirred, wondering how he went from thinking about a faceless person to the present. He moaned when he saw the clock.

"Get up, it's after six."

"Sure thing, Boss." Tony pulled himself out of bed and stumbled into the hall bathroom. The man in the mirror staring back at him was tired and groggy, but even feeling like this, he still felt better than he'd felt all week. "That does it," he said to his reflection, "no more couches for you."

"I feel good, Boss," he commented on the silent ride into NCIS. "Not great, but good. I think I just need to get a new mattress. I've had mine for a long time, and, well, let's just say it's probably time for a new one."

There was no doubt in his mind that Tony's mattress should have been replaced long ago given his penchant for an active night life, but he'd never known a bed to cause that much fatigue; otherwise, the entire military would be in trouble.

They exited the elevator and Tony followed his boss to the bullpen. He sensed their eyes on him and shot each of his colleagues a look before saying, "Good morning, Ziva, Probie."

She studied him a beat before answering, "You sound chirpy this morning."

"Chipper. I sound chipper is what you mean to say."

Gibbs passed straight through the bullpen, not even stopping to check the papers on his desk. That was not exactly what McGee would have liked to have happened.

"And, yes, I'm feeling chipper today," Tony feigned, hoping if he said it, it would be true.

McGee also feigned a pleasant tone, "Yes, it's good to have you back."

"Listen, McGee," Tony said walking towards him, "I'm really sorry about the other day. I don't know what came over me, but I am sorry. How 'bout I buy you lunch to make up for it? I'll even bite the bullet and take you back to that sorry excuse for an Italian Pizzeria that you like so much."

McGee relaxed. This was the Tony he knew. "Okay. I accept your apology and I'll gladly go back to Mama Lucia's."

Tony turned to Ziva and said, "And I'll treat you too if you don't already have lunch plans."

"Why? You did not throw me up against a filing cabinet."

"Thanks for reminding me," he responded, slightly embarrassed. "But you did do my work on the MacGreggor case, so I owe you."

"In that case, I accept. But you should know that I left the paperwork for you on your desk."

Gibbs had headed straight for Autopsy to get a second opinion. "So, you don't think a bad mattress could cause such fatigue."

"I do not. A bad mattress will give you a sore back, and that may tire a person, but it won't cause the extreme fatigue that Tony is experiencing."

"But he seems better today."

"A good night's rest can do wonders, but that's not the reason you took him home with you last night, is it?"

"No. I needed to make sure he was sleeping at night—alone."

Ducky nodded, "Yes, that would be a good way to ensure that. But I sense there's something more."

"I checked on him twice during the night and he was different, not exactly restless, but tense. Do you really think he could be experiencing some level of PTSD?"

Ducky moved away from MacGreggor's body and to his book shelf. He pulled down a thick reference manual and opened it to an already bookmarked page and read from the paragraph, "Post Traumatic Stress Disorder can manifest itself it more subtle ways. It could be something as unnoticeable as a one second seizure or a brief nightmare. Victims of PTSD can go years without displaying any noticeable symptoms."

"How is it treated?"

"With time and therapy."

They both knew that Tony would never willingly go to therapy.

"Duck, just tell me he's going to be fine."

"I wish I could, Jethro. Tony's a complex man, with complex feelings. This could be something just in passing, like the small tremors that release pressure on the tectonic plates, or it could be symptomatic of something much larger."

Gibbs thought about that last statement all the way to Abby's lab. She greeted him excitedly, "I hear Tony's better! That's good news, right?"

"Yes, Abby, Tony seems to be better. Whad'ya find out?"

Abby pulled up some files on her computer and interpreted them, "I ran his blood through forty-three different tests. I didn't really expect to find anything but I ran them all the same. And I was right, there's nothing unusual about any of them."

"Keep running them."

"But Gibbs, I need more blood, and it was easy to get it when he was sleeping, but it's not so easy to get it when he's awake. He doesn't like needles."

Gibbs shifted from foot to foot, wondering why everything had to be difficult. "I'll talk to him."

Abby sensed that her boss was anything but satisfied with the answers he was getting. As he was leaving, she yelled to him, "Send him to Palmer; he's a master at drawing blood."

Gibbs walked into the bullpen and was pleasantly surprised to see all three of his agents working. McGee was clicking away on his computer, Ziva was on the phone, and Tony was filling out reports. He stood in front of Tony's desk waiting for his attention.

"Hey, Boss. What can I do for you?"

"You can let Jimmy Palmer take some more blood."

"Blood? Why? I'm feeling fine and—wait a minute. He already took some of my blood?"

Gibbs smiled and returned to his desk where Tony promptly followed.

"If he already took my blood, why does he need more?"

"He doesn't need more, Abby does."

"Abby? What for?"

Gibbs gave his senior field agent one of his famous stares.

Tony defended himself, "I know what Abby will do with it, but why are you testing my blood?"

"Because you spent the last two days sleeping in Autopsy and I want to know why." For just a fleeting instance, Gibbs saw an anger flare behind Tony's eyes. It was enough for him to brace himself, but then it disappeared.

McGee took note of Gibbs' split second reaction and knew that Gibbs had seen what he'd seen.

Tony looked around, orienting himself. He felt at a loss, like a moment of time had escaped his life and he wasn't quite sure why it was gone or how to recover from it.

Ziva furrowed her brow at his confusion. One moment he was his usual self, arguing a point with Gibbs that he didn't have a prayer of winning, and the next, he was someone else, complete with different body language and movements. She set the phone in its cradle before she'd finished her conversation and stood up. "C'mon, Tony, I will take you to see Palmer."

It was only then that Tony saw his boss' face, and it was then that he finally identified the source of his rage.

Chapter Break

McGee waited until Ziva and Tony had stepped onto the elevator and the door had shut before he stood up and approached his boss, "Did you see that?"

Gibbs hated when the obvious was stated, "Yeah, McGee, I saw that."

"No, what I mean is did you see the look in Tony's eyes?"

That got Gibbs' attention.

"It was the same look he gave me the other day. It was different… HE was different. It's as if he was going to kill me."

Gibbs rubbed his chin at the comment. McGee was right. There was that split second where Tony looked as though he could do great bodily harm. And now the thought of Tony being down in Autopsy unnerved him. Standing, he said, "C'mon." They took the stairs to intercept them.

Ziva was finally happy at being with her partner. When he was around, she was content, which might explain her continuous chattering. If it was bothering Tony, he didn't let on.

"According to Abby, Jimmy is quite the expert at such things. You should not be afraid, Tony. He was top in his class."

She waited for a response from either man, but judging from Tony's skeptical look and Palmer's frozen expression, she wasn't going to get one. Thankfully, the door to the stairwell opened and Gibbs and McGee burst through, startling everyone in the doorway.

"Problem?" Gibbs asked.

Ziva turned around, confused by the question. "No, not that I am aware of at least."

"Good." He tilted his head, studying his senior agent.

From Tony's peripheral vision, he felt the eyes boring into him again and it made him uneasy.

With Dr. Mallard's silent permission, Palmer began gathering the instruments he needed and laid them on the stainless steel table. Ducky broke the silence and said, "Anthony, why don't you have a seat in my chair and take off your jacket and tie and roll up your sleeve."

Once he saw the instruments laid out on the table, he protested, "Is this really necessary? I'm feeling fine, much better than I have in days—"

"It's necessary, Tony. Go on, sit."

Tony took a deep breath and started to protest some more until Gibbs stated, "Palmer can take your blood the normal way, or I can shoot you and we can get it that way. Your choice."

Ziva and McGee smiled at the threat, although a small part of them thought Gibbs might actually do it. Even Ducky offered up a smile, hoping it would serve to relax his patient, but Tony didn't seem to be feeling the humor, which was uncharacteristic of him.

Tony took off his jacket and tie and rolled up his sleeve, revealing the bruises again. Irritated, he looked at Palmer and said, "Taking my blood would explain these bruises."

"No," Ducky answered, "they're not consistent with bloodletting. They appear to be more like defensive bruises."

Tony studied his arm until he decided he didn't want to look at it anymore. He couldn't explain how they got that way and he had absolutely zero memory of any altercation that might have caused the dark blue splotches. He looked at everything but his arm as vial after vial of blood was captured. He felt light headed and attributed that to the loss of blood from his body. When it was over, he rolled down his sleeve and buttoned the cuff and went to stand, but his balance was off slightly.

"You'd better wait a few minutes," Palmer said, thankful that Ziva was nearby to steady him.

Gibbs said, "Keep him as long as you need, Ducky, then send him up when you're done. Ziva, stay with him. C'mon, McGee, you're with me."

Ziva looked at her pale friend and asked, "Would you like to lie down?"

"No, I'd like to get back upstairs to work."

Ducky said, "Give it a few minutes, Anthony. Whatever you're going through is taking a toll on your body. You should lie down until you get your legs back."

Reluctantly, Tony made his way over to his usual bed and laid back. Ziva looked down on him and smiled, "You do not look so bad today. In fact, I would say that you are back to your handsome self."

Tony furrowed his brow, "Why are you being so nice to me? Do you know something I don't?"

"No. I just don't see any reason to kick someone when he is down."

Tony thought about that. Was he down? Why was he having feelings of anger and rage which only flitted across his brain for a second and then vanished? He didn't know the answers but it felt good to lie down again. He decided to close his eyes just for a minute.

Chapter Break

Tony put the finishing touches on the MacGreggor report at exactly 7:08pm, which was still several hours before Gibbs usually left the office. McGee had gone home already but not before Tony had apologized, "Sorry, Probie, for sleeping through our lunch date. We're on for tomorrow, okay?"

"Tomorrow's Saturday and I already have plans, but I'll take you up on your offer on Monday."

'Where did the week go?' Tony thought. "Okay, we're on for Monday."

"Just get some sleep over the weekend, Tony."

Ziva left with McGee and he sat alone in the bullpen. Gibbs was nowhere to be found but he didn't need him for anything other than to tell him he'd finished the report, a fact he would most certainly conclude from seeing it sitting on his desk. He pulled his gun from his desk and clipped it on; threw his badge in his pocket and picked up his backpack. It was Friday night and usually he's up for drinks and going out, but not tonight. Tonight he was up for some pure physical lust. Maybe what he needed was an evening with Maura. She is quirky, but just as her name describes, she is a dark haired beauty who just happens to be highly intelligent, and, oh yeah, excellent in bed. Yes, he thought, he'd swing by the bar and see if she was there. He left with more of a spring in his step than he thought possible and completely oblivious to the two men watching his every move from the mezzanine.

"How is he?" Vance asked.

"He'll be fine."

"That's not what I asked."

"There's nothing medically wrong with him."

Vance frowned, "I talked to Dr. Mallard. He suggested that Agent DiNozzo may be suffering from some form of PTSD."

Gibbs said nothing.

"I'm ordering a psych exam for him."

"Leon, you know what the results of that could mean."

"I do, and that's why I'm ordering it. I can't have my best team put in jeopardy by one man. You know as well as I do that if he can't pull his own weight, he's no good here."

Gibbs did know that. He knew that all too well, and in Tony's current condition, he also knew that he'd never pass the NCIS psych evaluation.

**************************************8

Tony lay panting in bed; beside him and breathing just as hard was Maura. She was the first to speak, "You know, Tony. When God made a man and a woman, he must have had us in mind because no one does this better."

She felt him smile and rolled over and asked, "What brings you out tonight?"

He took a deep breath contemplating her question. Fortunately, she began talking again before he did. "I haven't seen you in almost six months and then you show up out of the blue. I was supposed to meet Harry Stolz, but I guess he can wait for another time."

"THE Harry Stolz?"

She nodded.

Harry Stolz was the CEO of Merrings Corporation and the tenth richest man in the country. "I feel honored," Tony said, although he couldn't have cared less and she knew it. He then let her snuggle under his arm and gently caress his chest before he answered, "I actually wanted to go to the bar last night, but something came up. I guess I just need some pure unadulterated sex with a partner who knows what she's doing."

"Is it that dry out there in the land of meaningless sex?"

He wasn't sure of the reason himself but he admitted, "I haven't been feeling myself lately and I wanted to see how much of my life has been affected."

"I can assure you that you're better than ever at making love. But if you don't mind my saying, you did seem a little 'off' at the bar."

"Like how?"

"I don't know. Just different. Like there's something on your mind."

He kissed her forehead before asking if she wanted a drink. He returned with two opened bottles of beer and handed one over. "You want me to drive you home or call you a taxi?"

She clanked her bottle against his and said, "Tonight I feel like being driven home. Do you mind?"

"Not at all. Busy day?" Maura was a managing partner at one of DC's preeminent brokerage firms and Tony had refused many a gift from her, including a fire engine red late model Maserati. Unfortunately for her, Saturdays in the life of Maura Carlotti was like any other day of the work week. There truly was no rest for the weary, but that's the game and she loved playing it. She also knew the rewards were generous.

"Yeah, early morning breakfast meetings followed by late morning meetings, following by early afternoon lunch meetings—"

He tickled her and she squealed in delight. Their playfulness ended in another lovemaking session, and he drove her home at three in the morning.

**************************************8

By the time he woke up on Sunday, half the day was gone, but worse than that, the fatigue had returned. He rolled over in bed and rubbed his face. For the first time, he was beginning to get worried. Maybe he had one of those viruses that there was no cure for and he was destined to live in a chronic state of fatigue the rest of his life. He tried to sit up but he struggled with it. He'd lost almost twenty pounds—twenty unexplained pounds, so getting out of bed should be easier, not harder, but he landed on his knees next to his bed, elbows on his mattress, hands holding his head. "Shit!" he exclaimed as his world spun around him. What in the hell was happening to him?

Chapter Break

Gibbs pushed through the director's door and asked, "What's the emergency?"

"There's been a breach of information originating from NCIS."

"What kind of breach?"

"A break-in, of sorts. Some classified data has been compromised."

"Why're you telling me? Tell it to cyber security."

Vance picked up his remote and clicked on the plasma screen. On the dimly lit screen, Gibbs watched a hooded man enter the squad room, sit down at Tony's desk and start working on his computer.

Vance fast forwarded to when the man left. "Your agent spent the better part of Firday night at his desk. The same exact time that the data breach took place."

"How do you know that's Tony?"

"He used his ID badge to get in."

"It still doesn't mean it's him. Have you had the film enhanced any? The man's wearing a hood—"

"With Ohio State stenciled on the front."

"Leon, c'mon! That could be any number of people. Even if it happens to be Tony, which I highly doubt, he's not the one leaking information."

Vance pressed the button on his phone and said, "Send him in."

Gibbs turned and watched a reluctant McGee enter the room, nervous.

"Tell him what you told me."

McGee stammered out his report, "The Director asked me to trace the source of the leak. It took most of yesterday because the hack is a very sophisticated one. Whoever did this managed to disguise an outside server as a router into the NCIS computers. Then they forced the server to replicate itself, while simultaneously creating mirrors of itself, which is a very difficult thing to do, but a sophisticated hacker, a very sophisticated hacker, could do it. At first glance it looks as though the mirrors sent data back and forth to itself, but in reality the data was being transmitted."

"McGee! English!"

"Have you ever been in a house of mirrors? Maybe when you were a kid?"

Gibbs continued impatience pushed his subordinate along. "Well, if you've ever walked through one of those houses, you know that it's designed to make you think there's a way out, but at every turn you end up running into another mirror. There's actually only one way out and even that path may be obstructed. What I discovered was that the data did find its way out of the server and subsequently out of the country."

"How far out of the country?"

"Afghanistan."

Gibbs stared at McGee who could barely hold his gaze. He knew he'd regret asking this question, but he asked it anyway, "How does Tony fit into all this?"

McGee hesitated for he did not want to say what Director Vance was expecting him to report. Finally, he answered, "Tony's computer is the source of the leak. The time stamp is Saturday morning at 2am."

"Are you sure?"

"I had Abby double check it. We're positive."

Chapter Break

Tony hurried into the elevator. For the first time in a week, he was going to be on time for work, thanks to some over the counter amphetamines and super caffeinated coffee. The down side was he was full of so much energy he wasn't sure if he would be able to actually sit at his desk and work.

"Good morning, Ziva," he said whisking past her cubby. He tossed his backpack on the floor, deposited his gun and badge in the drawer, and turned on his computer. It wasn't until he sat down and looked up that he noticed her expression. "I'm early today and I'm ready to work, so watch out." He looked around at McGee and said, "I haven't forgotten about lunch, Probie. Your choice of dives." His finished signing onto his computer and asked, "Where's our fearless leader?"

From around the corner, Gibbs appeared as if on cue, and stared down at his agent.

"Oh—hi Boss. I'm feeling better today."

Gibbs studied him, not believing a word of it. Shaky hands, dilated pupils, and a flushed face—not exactly the Tony he expected. "Why?"

"Why? Why what? Why am I feeling better? Well, good question. I think all I needed was some sleep and that's what I did over the weekend." It was at this moment that Tony started to feel something might be wrong. Everyone was staring at him. "What's up, Boss?"

Tony found himself sitting in the conference room with Gibbs and Director Vance. "What's going on?" he asked again, wondering why they were being so quiet. Vance clicked on the video and replayed the same images that he'd shown Gibbs an hour earlier. "What's this?" Tony asked.

"That's you breaking into NCIS' files," Vance answered.

"What? That's not me!"

"It looks like you."

"But it's not me. When was that taken?"

"Early Saturday morning. The same time the files were sent overseas."

"Ha! I was with a friend early Saturday morning."

"Can this 'friend' corroborate your story?"

"Of course she can."

There was silence in the room as each man thought about the revelation. If Tony couldn't present an alibi, Vance would go after him.

The Director looked over at Gibbs, reluctant to state the obvious, but protocol dictated his moves, "We have to turn this over to the FBI. I've already called Agent Fornell; he should be here any minute."

"What are you talking about?" Tony said. "That's not me on the tape. I don't even own an Ohio State hoodie!"

Gibbs answered the knock at the door and allowed Fornell and Agent Sachs to enter. Tony groaned, "Not again."

"What have you done this time, Agent DiNozzo?"

"Nothing! Just like last time, Slacks."

Agent Sachs offered, "Someone framing you again, DiNozzo? You sure do have a lot of enemies."

Gibbs placed a firm hand on Tony's shoulder, keeping him seated, and responded, "Just start the investigation. I suggest you start with Tony's alibi for Friday night."

"And who might that be?" Fornell asked.

"Maura Carlotti."

Fornell and Gibbs paused at the name, raising an eyebrow. Fornell asked, "The Maura Carlotti?"

"Yeah."

"The woman who's a managing partner at Mancusso, Magliscue, Long and Carlotti?"

"Yeah," Tony replied.

"Agent Sachs, would you escort Special Agent DiNozzo to interrogation room 2 while we pick up Ms. Carlotti?"

Gibbs replied, "I'll do it. You take Ziva and pick her up."

Fornell nodded in acknowledgement and ticked his head at Sachs. Begrudgingly, the younger FBI agent left the room, followed by Vance and Fornell.

Tony turned to his boss, "I didn't do what they say I did, Boss."

"I know. Just play the game until we get a break, and don't do anything stupid."

**********************8

When Gibbs entered the observation room he was surprised to see so many people. Unless you could provide something germane to the investigation, he didn't want you around. But since he didn't know which ones of his team Tony would turn to, he decided to let them stay. They parted as he made his way closer to the glass so he could witness Ms. Carlotti get interviewed by Agents Sachs and Fornell. "This should be good," he mumbled.

Sachs opened up the questioning, "Can you tell me how you know Anthony DiNozzo?"

Maura Carlotti was an exotic beauty. She had raven colored shoulder length hair, green eyes, and legs that never stopped. She paused before answering each question as if she were formulating the perfect words. "He and I are friends. We met two years ago at a party."

"Do you date?"

"We do."

"Do you know what he does for a living?"

"He is a federal agent with NCIS."

Fornell and Sachs seemed a bit surprised at her candor.

"Can you state the nature of your friendship?"

"We are simply friends."

"Isn't it true that you once offered him a car? A Maserati to be exact?"

Maura tilted her head and nodded, "Yes. At one time, I thought that Tony and I could be more than friends, but he didn't want it. If you knew him, you'd know he keeps his relationships at arm's length."

"So he didn't accept the car?"

"No. You can't buy Tony with money; he was brought up with it and isn't easily impressed by it."

"Did you see him Friday night?"

"Yes. He came into the bar we usually frequent and we visited."

"You did more than just visit, didn't you?"

Maura tilted her head again, wondering where this line of questioning was going.

Sachs smiled when he added, "So how would you characterize your friendship now?"

She smiled back, "We are friends with benefits."

Abby enjoyed her comment and took an instant liking to her. On the other hand, Ziva narrowed her eyes and took an instant disliking to her.

"Excuse me?" Sachs said, knowing what that meant but, for the record, wanted clarification.

She sized up the men, knowing she was getting ready to toy with their libidos. "Tony and I used to date frequently. He was the one for me, but I wasn't the one for him. But we did have one thing in common. No matter what, there was one thing that nobody did better. We are damn good in bed together. In fact, I've been with my fair share of men," she added, flirting with her interviewer and producing the intended results from him, "but I have to admit that I've never been with a man who's perfected the art of love making quite like Tony has. He's that good, and that's why," she leaned forward, almost whispering, "I'll drop everything to lay with him, because few men can satisfy me the way Anthony can. He is a master in the bedroom. Can you say the same?"

Sachs and Fornell swallowed at the images she was conjuring. She had a way about her that was erotic and sensual and it left them imagining things they shouldn't have been imagining. When she leaned back and crossed her legs, she added, "You know he's Italian and Italian men just do it right. After a night with Tony DiNozzo, there's no going back to the mundane love making of you boorish Americans."

Sachs cleared his throat, hoping Fornell would jump in and take over. When that didn't happen, he cleared his throat again and asked, "So when did you go home?"

"He drove me home around three o'clock."

"You didn't stay the night?"

"No."

"Do you know where he went after he dropped you off?"

"No."

"Do you care?"

"Like I said, I got what I wanted; he got what he wanted."

Gibbs smiled at the outcome of the interrogation. They learned nothing except that Tony was telling the truth. When Sachs and Fornell entered the dark room of observation, Sachs said, "Put them together. I want to see if we've missed anything."

Abby smiled and accused, "You just want to see two hot people in the same room together! Shame on you!"

He went to object but Fornell interrupted, "Why are you in here? Don't you have a lab to run?"

"I'm here to support Tony. You may have a job to do, but I know he didn't steal any secrets."

When Tony entered the interrogation room with Maura, she stood up and hugged him, "Are you all right? They're interrogating me like we did something wrong."

"They think I did."

"What's wrong with being the best damn lover on the East Coast?"

"I don't think that's their problem. Remember when you said I was acting differently? Did you tell them that?"

She looked directly at the mirror, "Who's behind that?"

"My boss. If anyone can figure this out, it'll be him, so you can talk freely. What was it you said?"

Behind the mirror, all ears perked up. Tony was either digging himself into a hole or genuinely trying to help the investigation. Either way, the information forthcoming was going to be pertinent.

"I thought you seemed distracted, like you weren't really yourself."

"Why did you think that?"

"I think it was your expression. You had this look in your eyes like you were being controlled."

"That all?"

"Yeah."

He kissed her and she hugged him, asking, "Are you going to be okay?"

"I don't know. I haven't been okay for a while."

TBC