Meanwhile back in the mine, Ducky knelt by his friend's side and held his hand. He could see from the bruises and swelling on his face that he had taken quite a beating. The laceration on his scalp was jagged and deep. Obviously where he hit the hearth in Winslow's he thought. He knew the damage such a blow could cause. At best he could have a concussion, at worst a haematoma. Jethro was unresponsive and this concerned him. He shone his torch light into Jethro's eyes to check his pupil's responses. They were sluggish, not a good sign he thought. He was also worried because Jethro's body temperature was very low. He feared his friend was going into hypothermic shock. He had been lying there for over 24 hours after all. Ducky knew dehydration and the cold could be silent killers. He tucked the coat around Gibb's torso, hoping to bring his body temperature up slightly.
"Jethro, you've just got to hold on, do you hear me? Help is on the way," Ducky said, praying Gibbs could hear him. He only hoped that the help he spoke of would get there on time. He knewthat they were in a remote area and that Stillwater didn't have a hospital. He had no idea where the nearest trauma centre was and therefore no idea how long they would have to wait for an ambulance. He shivered slightly in the coldness of the mine, rubbing his hands up and down his arms to try and keep the blood circulating. To him it seemed like Tony had been gone for an age. He decided to keep talking to Gibbs, for his own sanity if nothing else.
"You're going to wake up, Jethro, are you listening to me? Open your eyes for me," Ducky coaxed, hoping to see a flicker of life. Ducky shook his head in despair, still nothing. "It was hard enough for me to have to look after Jennifer when she died, Jethro. Please don't make me go through that again. Come on old friend, open your eyes," he pleaded. As he did so he squeezed Jethro's hand. For a moment he thought he felt a weak grip on his hand also.
"That's it Jethro, open those eyes. Come on," he urged, grasping Jethro's face with both hands. As he did, Gibbs' eyes opened slightly. "There we go, Jethro! That's it," Ducky continued. Gibbs tried to speak. Ducky put his ear close to his lips to try and make out what he was saying.
"Are you real?" he rasped weakly, unable to focus properly.
"I'm very real, Jethro. Don't worry, we're going to get you out of here," Ducky replied. "Just hold on a little longer." Ducky could see that he was struggling for breath and felt helpless. Without equipment there was little he could do except be there for him.
Gibbs eyes slowly closed again. "No Jethro, I need you to stay awake," Ducky said, lightly tapping his cheek in an effort to bring him around again. But he had succumbed to oblivion once more.
Ducky looked up when he heard noises from further up the mine. He hoped it was the rescue party but his hopes were dashed when he heard Tony announcing his return.
"How is he?" Tony asked urgently.
"Not too good," Ducky replied. "How long before help is here?"
"I don't know. The sheriff's department is co-ordinating it. I brought what I could from the cars. Here, some blankets," he said handing them to Ducky. "I brought the two first aid kits, not sure if they'll be of much use."
Ducky tried to wrap Jethro in the blankets as best he could. It was as he was doing so that he noticed the leg injury for the first time. He felt down along Gibbs leg and paused at the knee. "Oh my, I can feel definite movement. His patella is broken," he told Tony. "Did you get any water?" Ducky asked. Tony handed him the bottle. Ducky took out a handkerchief from his pocket and wet it. Then he squeezed it out and let the water drip onto Jethro's chaffed lips. Slowly he tried to get Gibbs to take moisture. Tony looked on feeling powerless. As they were talking, Hamill, the young deputy came down to them.
"The Air Ambulance is on it's way. The only place it can land near here is in the yard of The Winslow Mining Company. It'll take close to 30 minutes for them to hike from there to here," he informed them.
"Thirty minutes?" Ducky exclaimed. "That means it could be more than an hour then before we get him back to the helicopter! I'm not sure he'll make it that long," he replied, painting a pretty bleak picture.
"We could carry him," Tony suggested. "We could try and get him to Winslow's ourselves. Do you know the way?" he asked Hamill.
"Sure I do. It's fairly rough country though and it's getting dark out there," he pointed out.
"I'm not sure about this, Anthony. Moving him might not be the best idea. We don't know what internal injuries he has sustained," Ducky explained.
"What choice do we have, Duck? We can stay here and watch him die or we can get moving and give him a chance," Tony replied with gusto.
"Okay, I agree. We don't have much choice. How will we carry him?" Ducky asked. Tony thought for a minute and then bent down and produced a body bag from Ducky's large pack. Ducky raised an eyebrow but knew it would work.
"Let me check him for other injuries before we move him," Ducky said, as he pulled the blankets from Gibbs and felt his neck and his chest. "There are a few cracked ribs," he noted. "Help me roll him for a minute," he said to Tony. Once they had him on his side, Ducky felt for deformities in his spine. He was relieved to find nothing unusual.
"Okay, put the bag under him and I'll roll him onto it," Ducky advised the two younger men. Once they had Gibbs lying on the bag, Ducky once again wrapped him tightly with the blankets. Ducky and Hamill each took a corner at Gibbs head. Tony took both corners at his feet. Carefully they lifted him. Their improvised stretcher seemed to be working. Gibbs was securely wrapped and for the moment seemed to be okay. They emerged from the mine into the dusk of evening. The sun was barely visible over the tree tops. As Hamill described their route, Ducky was glad to hear that most of their journey was downhill. Being the oldest of the men, he was already tiring from carrying the precious load, but had no intention of letting his friend down. He pushed his ageing body to it's limit. Imagine his relief when he heard the helicopter somewhere in the skies above them. He couldn't see it but it gave him some comfort knowing that Jethro was only a matter of minutes from receiving the vital medical treatment he so gravely needed.
"How much further?" DiNozzo shouted to Hamill, as he peered up through the tree canopy to try and see the chopper.
"Another ten minutes probably. At least the ambulance will have landed by the time we get there," he called back to Tony.
"You hear that Boss? Not long now," Tony shouted, as if Gibbs could hear him.
----------------------
Back in Stillwater, McGee, Ziva and Abby were in Gus' kitchen sipping tea. They felt lost, not knowing what to do. Tim was thinking about packing up and the long, lonely journey back to the Navy Yard. Abby was still in shock and snuffled intermittently. Ziva needed air and went outside and sat on the porch. To her it seemed that Stillwater had become busy all of a sudden. She saw the doctor's car hurry through the traffic lights without stopping. She was sure she could hear a helicopter in the distance. Then Gus rushed up the street, waving his arms.
"What is it?" Ziva said, running to meet him.
"Leroy is alive!" he puffed as he caught his breath.
"What? Are you sure?" Ziva demanded.
"The Sheriff just stopped me and asked me to tell you. He's on his way to the scene now. The Air Ambulance has been called. They found him and he's alive," he announced urgently.
Ziva turned and sprinted back towards the house. She burst in through the kitchen door causing McGee and Abby to jump.
"He's alive!" she yelled joyously.
"Who?" McGee asked puzzled.
"Gibbs of course," she informed them. Abby didn't know whether to believe her or not. McGee needed more information.
"Are you sure? Have they found him?" Tim wondered.
"Yes, alive!! They're taking him to hospital," Ziva explained.
"Yes! Thenk you God," McGee shouted with relief and looking up to the heavens.
"I knew it! I knew he couldn't be dead," Abby exclaimed enthusiastically hugging Ziva.
"Where are they taking him?" McGee wanted to know.
"I don't know. I'll try and find out," Ziva replied as she high tailed it out to the car and drove maniacally to the police station. Tim turned to Abby and lifted her up and swung her around with delight. Maybe it wasn't going to be such a bad day after all.
Contd/....
