Home is Nowhere

Home is Nowhere

Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late.

Disclaimer: I don't own Navy NCIS.

A/N: Sorry for the delay, I've been pretty busy lately. I should hopefully be able to get back into a routine now.

Chapter seven: Summer Shudder

Gibbs watched the scene in front of him from afar, a good few feet separating him from the glass window. He stood in a steely stance with his arms crossed over his chest, his face carefully blank of any emotion. His blue eyes stared almost unseeingly into the room behind the window, flickering with something that could only be identified by someone who knew him well. Unfortunately, there weren't too many people who fitted into that category; and one of the very few was the subject of his attention.

Tony looked mildly peaceful as Abby chatted a mile a minute to him, exhilarated that he appeared to remember her. But despite the calm exterior, Gibbs could detect something…different in Tony's eyes. Even under his intense study, which had by this point gone on for many minutes, he could not identify the new emotion. If he didn't know better, Gibbs would guess that it was…fear. But…Tony was never afraid. He didn't show fear. Ever.

Gibbs stared at his (former?) senior field officer for several more long moments, before turning briskly on his heel and striding back down the hospital hallway. "McGee!" He snapped as he entered the waiting room, drawing all eyes to him – including those that didn't belong to the two assembled members of his team. "What are you still doing here? We have an investigation to re-open!" He barked before flipping open his cell phone and dialling a number. He waited impatiently for a few moments, before someone finally answered.

"Agent Chase-"

"I'll be there in five, and you'd better have something." He snapped the phone shut with a loud click, before gesturing to his team. "McGee, you're with me. Kate, you stay here - I want a progress report on the hour every hour."

…NCIS…

Tony warily followed the energetic goth through the crowded parking lot, glancing around nervously at the hundreds of people. "…and another reason why it is so great that they've released you is…" Tony's mind scrambled to follow the one sided conversation, whilst trying to keep his attention on the other people at the same time.

"Abby," He whispered hoarsely, only to go unheard. He felt his breaths coming quicker as his chest began to tighten, a stranger brushing his shoulder as they passed. "Abby…" he tried once more, almost gasping as he tugged on her sleeve. She turned, finally, to meet his wild stare, eyes widening as she took in his anxious state.

He could feel himself shaking slightly as she grabbed his arm, trying to steady him. "Abby…get me…out of here." He whispered between ragged breaths as a large group of people walked by them.

"Ohmygod! Tony, what's wrong? Should I take you back to the hospital?" Tony shook his head urgently, sweat pooling on his brow as his eyes jerkily tracked the progress of the many people around him, some of which who were beginning to stare and crowd around worriedly.

"No…please no…" He began to beg, his eyes squeezing shut. "Just get me out…please get me out." Abby spotted her car a few hundred metres away, before dragging Tony through the staring crowd towards it.

The few moments it took for her to lead him to the car felt like years to Tony – he was pushed gently into the passenger seat as Abby jumped in, starting the car right away. Tony continued gasping for several minutes as she drove away form the hospital, until finally, his breathing calmed down.

"Are you alright?" Abby asked anxiously, her eyes snapping from the road to meet his fevered blue ones.

Tony nodded slowly, trying to further regulate his breathing. "I'm sorry." He said quietly after several moments of silence. "I…I dunno." He swallowed carefully. "Just…the people and…and the noise…" His voice trailed off as he stared vacantly out the window, pointedly ignoring her worried gaze.

"Tony!" She sighed with a slight shake of her head. "Never, ever be sorry about things like that!" She said, swatting his arms lightly. "It wasn't your fault. And you know what the boss says, apologising is a sign of…" She trailed off as he seemed to become even more distressed.

"Don't…don't say it." He gasped weakly, his hands tensing into fists. "Just…don't." He muttered, before his eyes slid closed, an exhausted sigh leaving his lips. "I'm sorry." He breathed, before drifting into sleep.

…NCIS…

He opened the ringing phone with a resounding snap. "Gibbs!" He barked, his sharp tone echoing through the almost silent bull pen.

"Gibbs, it's Kate. The hospital decided to release Tony, Abby's taking him home."

"What? So soon?"

"Apparently they've done all they can with the physical stuff, and he'll just need time for them to heal completely. And seeing as he down right refused to see the hospital psychologist, there's not much they can do about the psychological stuff either. The doctor assured me that the retrograde amnesia shouldn't last long, but that there really wasn't anything we could do if it did. They needed the bed, and since he wasn't physically in danger anymore, Abby took him home."

"Ring Abby and update me routinely." Snap.

"McGee! Chase! Got anything yet?"

"I'm working the a list of suspects we made before. One small problem though, boss."

"What, McGee!"

"The list is already about sixty names long."

"Well read me the most likely ones then!" He snapped, reaching the end of his rather short tether.

"Uh…Jason McDonald, the rapist Tony locked away while he was with LAPD. He just got out on parole. Henry Larson, the son of the serial killer that ended up on death row, you and Tony caught him a few years ago…"

"I remember." Gibbs said sharply. Now that had been an interesting case.

"Henry could be out for vengeance. Gordon Hillet, Tony got him a few years for drug trafficking a while back. He's out as of a year ago – "

"Anything more recent?"

Tim scanned the list for a moment, before tapping a name with his pen. "There. James White. Brother of the guy Tony was chained to a month or two before he was kidnapped."

Gibbs considered this for a moment, before nodding. "We got ourselves a Person of Interest. Check him out."

…NCIS…

"So…if you want, we could watch a movie or something?" Abby suggested, gesturing towards the couch. Tony glanced over, seeming to consider it for a moment, before shaking his head.

"I want…" He paused, licking his lips nervously. "I want to talk. I want you to tell me about…about me. How I was, I mean. How you knew me." He finished awkwardly, shifting his weight from side to side.

Finally, Abby nodded. "Okay. Let's go sit down then." She led him over to the couch, where he sat anxiously. He glanced up at her, awaiting her words almost eagerly.

"Where do I start?" She muttered, shaking her head with a smile. "You went to school in Rhode Island and went straight into law enforcement when you graduated. You went to a few different police departments, usually only staying for a few years before moving on. You met Gibbs –" She ignored his slight flinch at the name. "-When you were with LAPD and had to share jurisdiction. By the time the case was finished, I guess he liked what he saw, because he invited you to join NCIS. That's when we met, I'm a forensic scientist there. That was probably…four, five years ago? You were really stiff and formal at first, but after a few weeks I guess you warmed up to me.

"You've always been after the ladies, usually younger ones, although your relationships never last long. You don't really like commitment, and a couple of months ago you mentioned to me that you'd thought about quitting – that was after a pretty hard case though, and obviously, you didn't quit. You always make jokes and fool around, but you know when to be serious, too. Just under two years ago, Kate joined he team. She was a secret service agent, and you really didn't like her at first. You were also a little jealous because me and Gibbs seemed to take to her faster then we did to you. There was a slight resentment between the two of you for a few months but you got used to each other, and you're good friends. You still fight a lot though, and you have a habit of annoying her to the point of insanity and completely disregarding her privacy. McGee joined the team about nine months ago. You guys have…a bit of a strange relationship. You've always teased and hazed him, and until recently, he didn't really understand why. He thought you didn't like him at all. But Kate set him straight."

Tony closed his eyes with a sigh, frustrated with his inability to recall any memories. He'd been certain that once Abby told him everything, he'd remember…but that was not the case. "So that's all? That's everyone on our team?"

"Well…"Abby paused, not really knowing how to say it. "There's one other guy, but he wasn't there when you were. A few weeks after you disappeared, the director assigned another senior field agent to the team, Liam Chase."

"Do you know who this is?" White asked softly.

Tony studied the photo for a moment, before shaking his head. "Nope."

"His name is Liam Chase." White grinned. "He is the man that your precious Gibbs has replaced you with."

Tony's mouth went dry. "No…" He muttered to himself. "He wouldn't."

"He did."

Tony's head shot up, his eyes wide as the memory played over in his head. "I want to meet him." He said finally, his eye narrowed slightly.

"What?" Abby asked, looking confused.

"Liam Chase." Tony muttered. "I want to meet him. Can you arrange that?"

Abby studied him for a moment, before nodding carefully. "Sure, Tony. I'll ask Gibbs tomorrow-"

"No, not tomorrow!" Tony snapped, his head shooting up to glare in her direction. "I want to meet him now."

…NCIS…

"I dunno Gibbs, he seemed pretty adamant. He wants to meet Chase."

"Can it wait until tomorrow?" Gibbs asked, scanning the bull pen carefully. "He and McGee are looking into a Person of Interest."

"I'll ask." There was a brief pause with some muffled talk in the background. Gibbs could almost hear her wince as she picked up the phone again. "Uh…that was a no. A strong no. I don't know why, but Tony wants to meet him tonight. It's important to him Gibbs."

"Alright." He snapped the phone shut before striding over to where Chase sat, peering at his computer screen.

"Chase!" He barked, catching the man's attention quickly. "You're with me. McGee, you stay here and keep working on White." Gibbs began to walk off, Chase following him quickly.

"Where are we going?"

"Tony wants to meet you. Now."