Home Is Where the Heart Is
Disclaimer: NCIS characters/plot lines belong to DBP/CBS/Paramount. It's sad, really. I think it would be much more fun if HBO owned them. Just my opinion, of course. No copyright infringement intended.
Authors Note: Let me know what you think! Reviews are appreciated! A special "thank you" to Ellie—who helped tidy this chapter up so it was readable!_______________________________________________________
Chapter 7
He needed coffee. He needed to think. Cup in hand, he wandered over to the short stone wall that bordered the park and sat—allowing a moment to wish he had a cold Corona in his hand and was staring at the ocean from a Mexican beach. What now? The case bothered him. This would not end with a confession in an interrogation room. It would be ugly and violent. The only way they could stop this guy was going to be if he actually made a move on the target—and he didn't want to risk anyone in that manner. Especially her. Shannon, Kelly, Kate. Three women that he had not been able to protect. He didn't want to add Jen's name to that list.
What do you want? That question was still there—regardless of her change in assignment. The simple solution would be a purely physical relationship. His mouth quirked. Simple. Ha! The word and woman frankly did not go together—they never had. She lived in Europe. He was in D.C. If we had a chance, would I ask her to stay? Hell, he admitted to himself, I don't know.
He glanced at his watch and finished the coffee—crushing the cup and throwing it into the nearest recycling bin. What he did know is that he wanted them both to walk away from this unscathed and he had serious doubts that was possible.
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Autopsy was the first place that he looked after finding the squad room empty. Every member of his team was there— including the one that Director Vance had temporarily assigned to him. All were currently engrossed in one of the ME's long winded stories. That didn't quite explain why the body was still on the table, or why Ducky seemed to be conducting his lecture over it. Gibbs did note with a slight smirk that Jenny seemed to be standing to the left of the group; the furthest away from the body and the nearest to a trashcan—evidently, dead bodies still made her queasy. The memory of watching her heave during her first autopsy could still make him smile.
"At first glance, it seems a clear-cut sexual assault. But, as I have learned in my quest to probe into the human mind, these things are anything but straightforward. Convoluted, perhaps is a better description. Our man has been struggling with deviant thoughts, if not behavior, for some time."
"His sister probably made him play with Barbie as a kid" McGee's face flushed slightly.
"And another piece of the Probie puzzle falls into place" Tony taunted. "I'll bet if this guy played with Barbie, she ended up with a little string around her neck—or at least missing a limb."
The head slap resounded in the relative hollowness of the autopsy suite, "Just kidding, Boss. Not really that… appropriate…now that I think about it" Tony rubbed the back of his head, dropping his eyes to avoid those of his boss. Ziva and Jenny shared a smile.
"Deviant fantasies, Anthony, can begin in children as young as five or six. Not exclusively of course, but particularly in a home with sexual abuse or open sexual promiscuity going on—this, in my opinion, is plausible in this case. He is acting out toward a mother, a sister, or a strong female figure that possessed physical attributes similar to our victims. It's not about the sex, although he obviously does violate his victims. He's calculating, cold, detached. This is about control and the need to dominate. He may need the stimulation the violence provides to arouse him enough to feel anything at all"
"He killed before, Duck?" All eyes turned to Gibbs.
"In all probability, Jethro. He's too meticulous not to have at least one skeleton in his closet. Escaping detection has made him bold—hence, three bodies within a week. It may be a sign that he seeks attention—recognition for what he views as his accomplishments"
"But attention could lead to more attacks, yes?"
"That is a possibility, my dear" Ducky said in answer to Ziva's question, "but for now, the local media seem to have fulfilled his need for his fifteen minutes"
"My concern is getting the sick son of a bitch off the street—not feeding his damn ego. Or taking unnecessary chances" The latter part of his statement was addressed unswervingly at Jenny. She looked directly at him, unwilling to be intimidated by his irritation with her regarding Vance's decision.
"Back to your desks. Now. We've got to work to do" He spun on his heel and exited the room abruptly. The other agents released a collective breath as he left.
"That went well" Jenny's sardonic remark attempted to lift the oppressive spirit in the room.
"No offense, but why is Gibbs so against this?" Tony turned to her, "You've been an agent for what… ten, twelve years?"
"Fourteen"
"You're experienced. You have us for back up. Help me out, people. Am I the only one not seeing it?"
Tim and Tony both looked at Jenny. Her gaze was on Ducky who suddenly seemed very concerned with covering the body on the table. "I'll go after Jethro, Dr. Mallard. Tell them if you wish" Jen followed Gibbs hasty exit out of autopsy.
"Ducky?"
The ME sighed heavily. "It was an undercover assignment in the Czech Republic"
"We know" McGee said, "Special Agent Shepard told us she used herself as bait to catch a rapist"
"What she most certainly did not tell you is that she was injured in the resulting shoot out. She took a bullet to the right thigh. The bullet entered, hit her femur and shifted medially thus nicking her femoral artery. Such an injury can cause considerable blood loss—she almost died. She arrested on the table in the operating suite—it was very touch and go for the first 48 hours. I don't believe Jethro has ever quite forgiven himself for not taking out the shooter before the man got off that final, damaging round."
Ziva nodded, more to herself than anyone else. The scar she had seen in Cairo was vivid in her mind.
"Reminds me of Ari… and Kate" Tony added quietly.
"Except that our dear Caitlyn took the cruel and final blow, my boy. It is sometimes harder on the psyche to live with the incessant fear that you may lose someone than it is to actually lose them."
The agents headed for the elevator—each lost in their own interpretation of what the ME had told them.
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She caught him at the elevator—which surprised her. She wanted to touch him, but knew it would be a bad idea. He impatiently punched the button for the third time, frustration still rolling off him in waves.
"I didn't volunteer for this"
"I don't care"
"So I get punished because Vance is an idiot?"
The elevator doors opened and they both stepped inside. The doors closed and the elevator started—only to have Jenny reach out and flip the emergency stop switch. His look of irritated surprise was met with her expression of 'didn't think I'd remembered that trick, did you?'
"What's bothering you, Jethro?"
"You honestly don't know, Jen?"
"Well, I confess that I haven't had to speak "Gibbs" in a while. I may be a little rusty in my translation and I left my phrase book at home. Heaven forbid you actually talk to me in a complete sentence"
"Damn it, Jenny!"
"Close. Still not a sentence, Jethro. What's really bothering you? That I'm – albeit temporarily—reassigned to your team? Or that you didn't get what you came for last night? No—wait! Maybe you did. You neglected to mention it before sneaking out of my study at 4am"
"I didn't sneak out" So she had been awake! He didn't like the flash of guilt that he felt in his chest. If she had wanted him to stay, she could have said something!
She lifted an eyebrow and waited --her look somewhere between amused and annoyed. "If you're waiting for me to tell you that I'm sorry about what happened---forget it. Blame it on fond memories or even the bourbon if that works better for you…"
When his only response was to close his eyes and scrub a hand over his face and through his hair, she swallowed her pride and continued.
"Vance has given me a job to do. I don't have to like it, but I have to do it" She leaned over and flipped the switch. The elevator lurched upward. "I'd like to know that you'll be there to cover my ass, Jethro" The doors opened, and she turned to give her parting shot. "Since it won't be literally, I am relying on figuratively". She swept into the hall—leaving him in stunned silence.
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To Be Continued…
