Chapter 9

The NCIS team, local LEOs and Michael Williams are all in the vicinity where Ziva found where the underground bunker is located. Everybody is brushing away leaves, rocks, sticks and dirt in efforts to find the bunker entrance.

As Abby swings her hand to brush some stuff away, her hand hits a metal handle.

"Ow!" Abby shouted as she pulls her arm back.

Abby then kicks whatever caused her pain. She then begins rubbing her hand.

"I found the entrance!" Abby exclaimed.

Gibbs and the others quickly run over and begin looking around the area. After a minute, the bunker entrance is exposed.

"That's odd, there's no handle." Ducky stated. "How do you open this thing?"

Gibbs finds the broken bunker entrance handle. He holds it up. He then looks at Abby who just grins while trying to pretend she's innocent.

"Oopsy." Abby said. "I guess I kicked it too hard."

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs tries to get Tony's attention.

"Yeah Boss?"

"Go to the car and get the crowbar from the trunk."

"On it." Tony runs off.

"And hurry!"

As Tony runs to the car, the others try to figure out is there's another way to open the bunker entrance. They have no luck in figuring out an alternative and have to wait until Tony returns with the crowbar.

Gibbs sees Abby is rubbing her hand in pain. He stands up, walks over to her and gently takes her hand into his. Gibbs begins gently rubbing Abby's hand to help it feel better.

After some time, Tony finally arrives and hands the crowbar to Gibbs. Gibbs immediately begins to pry open the bunker entrance. With the entrance pried open as far as Gibbs could, a bunch of people grab the door and push it up, to fully open it.

Gibbs draws his gun, turns his flashlight on and enters into the underground bunker. The rest of the team does the same. The bunker is very dark and dirty. Gibbs shines the flashlight on the ceiling and sees there are light-bulbs.

"There must be a generator around here." Gibbs stated.

"I'll find it." Ziva said.

Ziva and two local LEOs walk off into a side room. The rest of the team and local LEOs continue walking down the corridor. At the end of the corridor, there's a huge door. The lights finally come on. Gibbs then opens the door. They enter into the large room.

Inside the large room, it's very dirty and reeks of urine, feces and of death. In total, there are 27 captives, 14 dead and 13 still alive. A couple of the captives who are still alive begin to scream in fear as they have no idea what's going on and who the people are that just entered into the room.

"Help these people." Gibbs stated.

Everybody begins going around the room in order to help the survivors chained to the walls. As the survivors are being helped, Abby goes outside in order to call 911 for immediate medical assistance. While inside the large room, Gibbs notices an empty set of chains next to a man chained to the wall. He walks over to the man.

"Lieutenant Edward Collins?" Gibbs asked in order to confirm the man's identity.

"Where's Brian?! Where's my friend?!" Lieutenant Edward Collins immediately asked in concern for his friend. "I told him to take my dog tags and bring them to NCIS."

"I'm Special Agent Jethro Gibbs, with NCIS. You're safe now." Gibbs stated as he begins trying to pick the lock of the chains. "Brian is fine. He's in the hospital doing well."

"I knew Brian wouldn't let me down." The eyes of Lieutenant Edward Collins become watery as he tries not to cry. "I knew he wouldn't leave me here to die."

Gibbs notices Lieutenant Edward Collins is trying hard to not cry.

"You've been missing for seven years. Brian told me what a traumatic experience it was. I can't even begin to imagine what you went thru. You have the right to cry." Gibbs stated. "I won't think any less of you."

With that, Lieutenant Edward Collins started bawling in relief that he'll now be able to go home.

After a while, ambulances arrive and Abby guides the EMT's to the underground bunker. The survivors are given immediate medical attention. With the survivors being helped, the NCIS team begins processing the crime-scene.

An hour later, all of the survivors are at the hospital being treated and doing well. More then two hours after finding the bunker, the NCIS team leaves the crime-scene. Gibbs goes to the hospital to speak with the survivors, while the rest of them all go back to the NCIS building. Ducky is down in Autopsy with the dead bodies. Abby and Jamie are in the Forensics Lab processing what was found inside the bunker. Chioke is once again sleeping on the futon in the lab. Tony, Ziva, McGee are up in the work area.

After a couple hours of being back at the NCIS building, Tony peeks over his computer to look at Ziva.

"Tony, is there some reason you keep looking at me?" Ziva asked.

"Yes." Tony grins.

"If you're undressing me with your eyes..."

"Eww… Why would I undress a man with my eyes?"

"Why would you kiss a transvestite?" (Author's Note: In writing this, I wasn't sure if this is something that Tony already knows that Ziva is aware of.)

Tony immediately looks toward McGee and throws a crumpled up piece of paper at his head.

"McGee!" Tony exclaimed.

"It slipped out a long time ago." McGee said.

"If you weren't cripple, I'd kick your ass, Gimpy."

Tony then looks back to Ziva.

"So you wanna try again?" Ziva asked.

"You know Ziva…" Tony stands up, grabs something from behind his desk, puts it behind his back and begins walking over to Ziva's desk. "I know you're a kick-butt assassin chick. You've probably killed quite a few people in your days. But…"

"What's that behind your back?"

"Can I finish?"

"Oh please… Continue."

"I'm sure you've had some really hard targets to assassinate. But nothing can ever come close to the skill it takes to assassinate…" Tony now exposes the thing from behind his back and puts it on Ziva's desk. "…A furry little animal." Tony grins as he finishes the sentence. "The squirrel you assassinated yesterday… I had it stuffed for you."

Tony then turns around in order to walk back to his desk. Ziva throws the stuffed squirrel at Tony. The stuffed squirrel hits Tony in the back as he's walking away. As Tony turns around to pick it up, he notices Gibbs and Jamie step off the elevator. He then runs to his desk, forgetting the stuffed squirrel. Gibbs and Jamie walk into the work area. Gibbs walks to his desk as Jamie goes over to Tony and sits on his desk. Tony wraps his arms around Jamie.

"Why is there a stuffed squirrel lying on the floor?" Gibbs asked as he stepped over it.

"It belongs to Ziva." Tony stated.

"No it doesn't! I don't want that thing!" Ziva exclaimed.

Gibbs walks over to the stuffed squirrel. He picks it up and walks over to Ziva's desk. He then places it onto her desk.

"You killed it. You keep it." Gibbs said.

Tony laughs.

"You can't be serious." Ziva protested.

"Do I not look serious?" Gibbs asked. He then turns to face Tony. "As for you… Hands off my daughter."

Tony takes his arms off from around Jamie.

"Boss, we've been discussing what happened in the lab earlier today with the whole acting like a lion thing. Tony said you explained it to him and if we wanted to know, to just ask you about it." McGee said.

"Oh, did he now?" Gibbs now glares over at Tony who just looks down at the computer and pretends to work. He now looks back to McGee. "What I explained to him was rule #51."

"What's Rule #51?"

"Rule #51; If an employee won't drop a subject, his testicles are subject to rule #9. And rule #9, which I hope you remember, is; Never go anywhere without a knife." Gibbs stated. "You still wanna know?"

"Oh… Umm… Forget it."

Gibbs now looks away from McGee.

"I can safely say that rule doesn't apply to me." Ziva stated. "So I wanna know."

"Rule #52 is basically the same as rule #51, but applied for a woman." Gibbs said.

"I don't plan on having children." Ziva said. "So?"

Jamie walks over to Ziva's desk.

"My Dad let loose at work one time and got busted. Let's leave it at that." Jamie said.

Ziva hands Jamie the wedding album with the wedding photos inside. Jamie opens the photo album.

"Thank you, thank you!" Jamie exclaimed. "I love it!"

Jamie gives Ziva a quick hug. She then looks to her father.

"You're on your own, Dad." Jamie said.

Jamie now walks over to Tony to show him the wedding album. Ziva now grins at Gibbs.

"Should I tell Tony what happened when you came to visit me in the hospital when I was blown-up?" Gibbs asked.

Tony's attention is immediately drawn and he looks over his computer in interest.

"What'd she do?" Tony curiously asked.

"Nothing." Ziva said as she really doesn't want Tony knowing she cried in the hospital that day.

"So what happened?" Tony asked again.

"Tony…" Ziva tries to get his attention as she stands. "Rule #51."

"Ha!" Tony exclaimed. "Like that would work on me!"

"Why wouldn't it?" Both Gibbs and Jamie ask at the same time.

Tony looks at them, especially Jamie.

"You wouldn't really allow her to use rule #51 on me, would you?" Tony asked.

"Yes, I would." Gibbs said.

"I'm sure you can live without those." Jamie said.

"Ha!" Ziva exclaimed.

Gibbs finally sips his coffee as he knows he finally won in getting the team to be quiet about the acting like lion in the Forensics Lab.

"Boss, aren't we gonna bring Doctor Robert T. Williams in?" McGee asked.

"No." Gibbs answered.

"Why not?" Tony asked.

"Cuz we're gonna do it tomorrow." Gibbs responded. "And right now, I have somewhere to go."

Gibbs then walks away and the team is left wondering why tomorrow.