Chapter Six

Adrien Norelli was, despite his outward appearance, a very shy and introspective man. A loner who preferred viewing the world through a camera lens. When the gate attendant flirted with him, he smiled gently before backing away, turning his attention to the professional digital camera hanging around his neck. Giving him an arch look, she shrugged at her coworker before moving to the next passenger in line with questions.

A short wait later, Adrien and his fellow passengers are ushered down the enclosed ramp to board the flight to Baghdad. Ignoring the comparison to cattle herded to slaughter running through his head, Adrien shuffled after the First and Business Class passengers to his own designated seat.

Once settled in his too narrow seat, his knees knocking up against the seat in front of him, Adrien pulled out a well-worn travel guide in Iraq. It was going to be a long flight. Adrien saw a lot of walks to and from the tiny bathroom in order to stretch his legs.

~NCIS~

Tim McGee was hunched over his keyboard, his eyes glued to the computer screen. He was carefully weaving through federal firewalls in a search for the mysterious proof of Gibbs' treason. Although he had found mentions of the charges, so far he hadn't found a single piece of actual evidence. As he had told Tony earlier, so far no one had appeared to have actually seen read evidence.

"McGee."

Tim barely acknowledged the person calling his name until he felt something hit him on the top of his head. He blinked as a wadded up ball of paper fell on his desk in front of him. He looked up in shock. "Ziva? What the hell..?"

"I have been trying to get your attention for some time. I wish to discuss what Tony said before. He was speaking out of his ear, yes?"

"What? I don't…Ziva, I'm busy here. I thought you were checking with your contacts about what might be going on."

"I have done some calling, but it appears no one is concerned. I believe Tony is overreacting."

Tim's confused smile vanished, wiped away by astonishment. "Gibbs disappears, he is accused of treason, no one seems to care, and Tony had to resign to search for him. I don't see any overreacting anywhere in there. You want to explain what your problem is?"

Ziva was keenly aware of his scrutiny. "I simply meant that there is little Tony can do to find Gibbs. I would've been a better choice."

"Doesn't matter what you believe, Ziva. I know you have many skills, both from your time with Mossad as well as what you've acquired here, but Tony knows Gibbs, better than any of us." He held his hand up as Ziva protested. "I'm sorry, Ziva, but it's true. Gibbs and Tony, they're friends and partners. You've seen how the two of them can hold long conversations simply with a look. You're not telling me that you can do the same thing with Gibbs. If you say it, you're lying."

"You do not agree with Tony's assessment of our working relationship, do you?"

"Ah, you mean what he referred to before this all went FUBAR? How neither you nor I respected him as Gibbs' second-in-command, the person who was in charge whenever the Boss wasn't available?"

"Of course, that is ridiculous."

"What part? That we didn't respect him? Because he was right, at least we didn't show him much respect when he gave us orders."

"Which he had no right to do. He was not our boss."

"Ziva," Tim shook his head. "He had every right. He's been Gibbs' SFA since long before you arrived here. Long before I came to work for Gibbs. I let my own arrogance blind me to that, even though I knew better."

Though she didn't answer, her face spoke volumes.

"We flat out ignored his orders when Gibbs was gone to Mexico. Even before that, the two of us were both questioning his orders, looking to Gibbs to see if he was backing what Tony said. I can't even tell you when it started for me, but you never really respected Tony's talents and experiences."

"And suddenly you believe in him?" Ziva asked.

"I always knew he was smarter than he let on. When you were gone, he and I worked on our relationship. I still have a bad habit of backsliding, but I try to remember that he would never dismiss me like I have him."

Seeing that Ziva was still refusing to see her actions as anything wrong, Tim tried again. "You've said that you have to follow orders, whether you like them or not. That is what you do in a chain of command situation. You obey the orders of your superior. There is always time afterwards to discuss why that order was given, but never at that moment. You know well enough that any kind of delay could get someone badly hurt or even killed.

"Tony was right. We both need to get our heads on straight. If we don't, he could write us up, suspend us, fire us. And I guaran-damn-tee you that Gibbs will back him up."

"The Director would not."

"Ziva, whether Vance is friends with your father or sees agents like me as the future of NCIS, he also is former military. And since you are as well, you should know how insubordination is looked at within the military. We wouldn't have a chance of sliding out from under any punishment deemed necessary for the morale and efficiency of the team."

"Tony was right. The day of reckoning can't be postponed forever. It's past time for you to decide. Do you want to be on the MCRT? Because if you do, you need to straighten up and remember that Tony is and, until he finally accepts his own team, will continue to be our superior. Now, if you don't mind, I still have work to do."