Chapter 10

The elevator door kept opening and closing to reveal a bored looking Ray Salazaar. He leaned against the wall of the elevator as he watched other agents and staff go in and out throughout the time he was sentenced there. He stood there, knowing he could wait it out, and that he was deserving of this. He did skip out and was gone for hours.

After letting Simkins leave, he took his time getting back to the office. He had a lot to think about. Simkins basically told him that he was the one that killed Rawlings and Caldwell but not really coming out and saying he did it. It also told him a few other things. One was the fact that his old team was doing well. His taking the fall did that and from the scant 'conversation' with one of his team members… they were doing okay.

The second thing was the fact that Simkins sought him out and tried to recruit him to his team. Ray could admit to himself that he missed being in charge of a team and doing ops. As much as he didn't like engaging in violence, he truly believed in the work he did. The fact he was doing the same job, but as someone's dirty little secret did sting a little. Still he did it. It did bring him back in contact with Ziva.

The door dinged and opened. He shifted his eyes but not his body when he saw Ziva. She was standing there, holding a file, but he could tell she was looking in his direction. He knew she was worried about what was going on about this whole case. He never wanted his world to collide like this with hers even though she was Mossad and knew a few things.

He shifted slightly, but never changed his countenance. He watched her as she went about whatever it was that she was working on with and managed to observe the other team members. He could see McGee walking through and closely followed by Callisto and he didn't seem to mind. In fact, people were already getting used to her being around. It helped that she was well trained. They were all good. He had seen it, which was why he was willing to endure the lecture he was going to get.

He watched the elevator door close and he was once again alone in the car with his thoughts. There was a ding a short while later and Gibbs walked in. He could see the others trying to take a look and see what would happen next. He turned away form them and focused on Gibbs as the man pushed a button to get the elevator to move to the coroner's level. They didn't get far before he tripped the emergency stop and the lights in the car dimmed to emergency lighting. Ray braced himself for what was going to happen next.

"Did running a company fry your brain?"

"Maybe. Too many projects to keep up with." Ray couldn't help it with the snarkiness. It was second nature to him and often automatic.

Gibbs looked at Ray with a piercing gaze while resisting the urge to give him one of his head slaps. He was angry, probably livid was the word that Ray took off without saying anything to anybody and then went missing for hours, not being in contact. It was a dangerous game, especially considering that he suspected there were secrets his old friend had and refused to acknowledge or talk about. He looked at Ray and said, "You know better than anyone about not being reachable."

"A necessary evil, Gibbs."

"And what was so necessary that you had us all wondering if you were dead or alive. Not to mention Vance entertaining the notion you might have turned."

"You know I wouldn't do that." Ray leaned his back against the wall and gave a slight eye roll as he shifted to glance at Gibbs. He was well aware that his manner was like risking a limb being torn off from the view of Gibbs' team, but he knew the man well enough to know when to push and when not to.

"I know that, but Vance doesn't and neither does SECNAV."

"Oh, you'd be surprised." Ray made a snort at that. He looked at Gibbs to see the man looking at him. It was that bland look that had normal people squirm uncomfortably because they didn't know what to do. He knew that Gibbs was waiting for more and continued, "I wasn't lying about meeting Secretary Jarvis before. It was an assignment… from Director Shepard."

Gibbs blinked at that and shifted to look at him. "She sent you?"

"Before he became SECNAV." Ray shifted on his feet and he thought about how to word things. "I've not just sat on my ass and built a company the last decade or so."

"They used you."

"Don't make it sound like I'm cheap." Ray chuckled a little at that. He looked at the doors of the elevator car, not sure of what to say to that. "The first couple of years… I held out hope. But then it was mission after mission and the caveat that I was expendable and no way they were going to let me back in. So, I started my company to keep busy in between." He shrugged his shoulders. "You could say that they used me."

Gibbs shifted on his feet a little and made a slight face. "And now you work for me. No secrets."

"You know I can't, Gibbs." Ray turned to look at the man that stepped towards him. "Just because I was given permission, there's still a gag order on me. Besides, the secrets I know…" He shook his head sadly. "You could say it was one of the reasons they kept me in this position."

Gibbs nodded at that. He wouldn't go more into that, but he still had to know, "So where were you?"

"Asking questions." Ray looked at Gibbs and added, "I was talking to an old teammate." He looked downward as he said it. His eyes shifted to look at Gibbs as he added, "From Dead Zone."

Gibbs straightened up, "And?"

"All but said that he was the one that killed Rawlings and Caldwell."

"Are you sure?"

Ray paused and swallowed slightly. "After DZ, I took the fall. The team was free to do whatever they wanted. One became a mercenary. He was my sniper. He's the one you want."

Gibbs absorbed the information. "You got a name?"

"I do." Ray nodded, "And I'll give it… To McGee."

Gibbs couldn't help but grin. The man always was one to keep cards close to the vest. It's why he was the one that was undercover. He could convince you he was what the cover was supposed to be. He didn't say anything but turned the elevator back on. "Just don't let things sit. You're on a team now,"

Ray glanced at Gibbs. He knew it was frustrating in that he was telling but not giving away everything. It was frustrating when they worked a case that involved classified information and it was need to know. He had dealt with that himself. In his line of work, the more information you had, the better the success on your op. Lack of information could get someone hurt or killed. He was well aware that he was doing the same thing, but the greater evil was putting them at risk. In the end, would it be enough?"

Gibbs glanced at Ray as the elevator continued to head down to the coroner's level and where Abby's lab was. He knew that Ray knew more than what he was talking about and the gag order was nothing. There was something else and he was reluctant to say anything. It occurred to him that there was a very real danger and his friend seemed to be operating under the premise that by not saying anything, no one else gets hurt. It sounded childish, but Gibbs understood.

The elevator dinged and Gibbs got off. He paused to look at Ray. He turned to walk away and threw back, "Get back to work. Case isn't going to solve itself."

Ray remained in the elevator and watched Gibbs depart as the doors closed. He knew that Gibbs was going to let it go for the time being. The exchange was that he give what he said he was going to give to McGee. And he had no intention of not following through. As much as he couldn't say what he wanted, he could help out the team as best as he could. After all, he wasn't going to let two servicemen's deaths go unanswered.

Pressing the button, he leaned on the back of the elevator car and sighed. He blew air and watched his bangs flitter gently. He could feel the strain of this case press on him. It was forcing him to go down the road that he couldn't talk about, but it looked like he was going to have to. He could hold out a little longer. He had to, if only to keep the team from walking into a sandpit; he would keep her from going in despite the fact she wanted to be there front and center with him. Sighing, he ran his hand over his mouth as he thought about his options his first finger rubbing his upper lip.

The bell dinged indicating he was back on the floor with the bull pen and he stepped out. It was just another day despite the fact that he was still somewhat in the doghouse with Gibbs. He rounded the corner, obviously heading towards McGee's desk but paused to see that the agent wasn't at his desk and Callisto wasn't there either. He wasn't concerned about her since he figured wherever McGee went, she went.

"Looking a little lost there, Salazaar," DiNozzo said as if he were trying not to be so obvious.

Ray felt his lower lip twitch. No doubt DiNozzo and Ziva were curious about what happened. It could play to an advantage though he could foresee a possible painful moment that involved sparring that was not in jest. Still, he would work with it and replied, "Not lost. Just curious. I have something for McGee and he's not here." He turned to look at DiNozzo and Ziva, "Did he take Cal out?"

DiNozzo would have messed with the newest agent simply because it was fun and on Gibbs' team he was the ranking agent. However, he was well aware that there was a different standing with Ray. It was a test to see which boundaries could be pushed. He went for it, "Don't know. If I told you, would you skip out on us again?" He eyed Ray with a pointed look.

Ray chuckled at that, "Guess I deserve that. Hard to get over old habits. Have to get used to working with a team." He studied the two agents. The angle he was at gave him the advantage of being able to look at Ziva with the question in his expression. Bold and risky, but it was better than taking her aside unless she followed him to invite herself to lunch or something. He added as a side note, "And while Cal and I are a team… it's not the same as this."

DiNozzo took the response for what it was, a polite response to ribbing and roundabout questioning. He knew it was going to take a lot to get Ray to slip up and stammer like McGee. And he could admit he liked the guy since he did have to zip tie a suspect's girlfriend and he saw what she looked like. He leaned back in his chair and said, "McGeek is still working on Rawlings' laptop. Went to see Abby about it. The mutt followed."

"Cal isn't a mutt. She was bred and born in one of the most reputable training facilities that train dogs for service."

"Well I think she's gorgeous," Ziva entered with a slight smile. "And the kind of girl I'd like to be friends with."

Ray resisted laughing out loud but managed a smirk. He knew that Ziva and Callisto got along well. Between the two of them, he was covered in terms of having bossy and caring girls in his life. "I'm sure she likes you."

Ziva was smiling like the cat that caught the cream. "She certainly seems to like McGee."

"Well, Cal does what she does. Loyal, steadfast and protective. I could always count on her to find what is needed." Ray adjusted his stance to look casual before giving a slight breath and saying, "Well I better get this down to McGee."

"If you need a background check, we can do it," DiNozzo offered.

Ray studied the senior agent for a moment. He had named McGee because the younger agent was good at background checks and he knew that he could get through a few firewalls too. He also recalled that DiNozzo was a cop once before an NCIS agent; all of that information he got when he started as the director's black ops man. It wouldn't hurt and he was certain that if he ran into trouble, he would find a way as well. Going with a decision, he approached the senior agent and offered the folded slip, "Alright. I have a name though it may not be his real one."

DiNozzo took the slip and opened it. He eyed Ray, "Thinking an alias."

"Maybe."

DiNozzo eyed Ray some more. He could have pressed, but he got the feeling that this case was not going to be the usual by the book. "Alright. I'll take a look." He watched as Ray started towards the elevator, "Where are you going?"

"To see McGee. And collect my dog."

Abby was busy with evidence from Caldwell and working with the program that Ray had given her. She was trying it out on simple digital files and they were looking good, so she was trying it on a casefile. It was like a digital bloodhound and it had her excited. It could recognize digital signals and track them down faster than anything out there. She had to hand it to the R&D department at Digicom. She liked what they did and in turn felt proud of Ray for what he did.

McGee seemed interested in it too. He came down with the pretense of exercising Callisto and to make it comfortable for DiNozzo since the dog wasn't receptive of him. Abby took it with a grain of salt, but it didn't stop her from getting friendly with the dog. She even wanted to get more friendly with the dog by giving her a hug. McGee was quick to warn her about Callisto and while she was insistent that most animals were friendly, she heard what Callisto did earlier. It made her grateful to the dog.

McGee had come down because he wanted to try something, and he didn't need the interruption. He wanted to try the program Ray brought over to try and weed out what looked like a second file embedded with the notes from Rawlings' laptop. He had been working on it since Gibbs told him to take it easy the rest of the day after they got back. He was fine, and, in his opinion, Ray had it worse since he got beaten up. Still, he would do his job and work on what he found.

It did have him wonder why Ray would pull the stunt he did. McGee figured that it was something dire and it must have felt like he had no choice. Almost like when he got in trouble regarding his sister, Sarah. Gibbs had been angry and didn't have a problem letting Ray stew in the elevator. Ray though looked like he was comfortable in the elevator. It had McGee wonder if he had been through that before and was taking it in a stride. There was a lot to speculate on, but he wasn't going to go there. He had a job to do and it was sitting right in front of him.

He had spotted something unusual about the notes on Rawlings' computer and decided a closer look warranted it. Using the program that Ray brought Abby, he discovered something within the notes; they were hidden files and they were in pieces. He was using the program to track the other pieces. He just had to make sure that the correct parameters were set. He kept checking the notes to the program to make sure he didn't type in anything wrong. His expression was so intense that he didn't hear Abby come up behind him until she teased, "So intense McGee. I like it," and wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

McGee gave a slight smile, used to Abby giving him spontaneous hugs. He adored Abby since the first time he met her. They dated for a while and then it stopped. It hurt, but it gave them both time to grow up in their emotions and he liked where they were at now. He would always love Abby. Just what kind of love depended on how time flowed along with where they were in their feelings. He grinned and replied, "Well Rawlings' files had something embedded in them but it's in pieces. The scanned notes file has a piece of it. I think there are more on the other ones."

"And you want to use Raymie's new program to see if you can find them. Brilliant." Abby gave that amused smirk that she gave McGee when he struck on something particularly brilliant. "You have a go at that while I try to find out who Caldwell really is."

McGee shifted to watch as Abby went to work processing their DB's prints. He didn't point out the military database getting a hit since they already knew that. With Ducky's findings about Caldwell possibly being someone else, Abby was up to the challenge of discovering that and hopefully find out what was going on at Leland that it involved their newest agent who had been elusive in the investigation but also helpful. He shifted to focus on his task and hopeful make something out of the theory he had.

It had been quiet for nearly an hour, so it seemed. They were doing their jobs and McGee was getting amused at the fact that Abby was ready to strangle her computer, if it were possible, to make it spit out an ID that was different from the one that they already had. It was quiet enough to hear the door to the lab open even though it was done quietly.

Abby was the first to speak, "Gibbs, I don't have anything just yet…" She turned to address Gibbs but instead came face to face with Ray who was smiling in bemusement at being called by the boss man's name. "Oh…" She stammered and paused, not sure of what to say.

Ray watched Abby with bemusement and his lip twitched from wanting to laugh. He had mercy on Abby and replied, "Well, I'm not Gibbs, but I will take whatever Scuito Bug you have for me." He smiled to make his request more beseeching and cute.

Abby smiled at his old reference for when she had anything new. McGee didn't quite get it and asked, "Scuito Bug?"

"It's like scuttle butt," Ray explained, "Except the updates on evidence comes from Abby." He gave a slight gesture in Abby's direction. "Hence Scuito Bug."

McGee thought about it and nodded. It made sense, but he got the silent warning from Abby that he wasn't allowed to use it. Instead he directed attention back to Ray and asked, "So… in any trouble?"

It wasn't subtle and McGee didn't have any other way of asking. It just felt better to come out in front and ask. Ray saw that and replied, "I've been in worse trouble. I got off easy."

"So… why'd you leave and not check in?"

"Force of habit." Ray gave a slight sigh like he was bored, but he wasn't. "I used to work alone for a long time. Just getting used to it and I had a lead and wanted to grab it before it went cold. Which reminds me…" He fished into his blazer pocket and pulled out a scrap of paper. "What I was checking on panned out. I have a name of our sniper."

McGee accepted the proffered slip of paper and eyed it with a raised brow. Normally on Gibbs' team, if you found a lead, you ran with it. You didn't hand off to anyone unless you were not able to and that usually meant some form of trouble. McGee sensed that as he looked at the name and then raised his brow at Ray. "You want me to run with this?"

"I'm good. You're better."

It was probably the lamest attempt at flattery, but Ray didn't want to waste time on explanations. The less the team knew about what he knew, the better. For now at least. He just hoped that McGee wasn't the type to ask too many questions unless they were pertinent and that he trusted him enough to take it at face value.

McGee wasn't fooled by the flattering comment. Yes he was good with the computer. It was his niche so to speak and a valuable tool to the Gibbs' team. It was something about the request that had him wondering more about the guy standing in front of him. He didn't think about whether or not he was dangerous. He was since he had the skill set to be that way. It was how he used it. McGee realized he could take this further and ask questions. Whether or not he'd get an honest answer was something else and it was something he didn't want to test it too much.

"I could, but I'm working on something else." McGee gestured at what he had been working on.

Ray looked at the screen and recognized his company's program. "I see that. Then it's no problem." He turned towards Abby and asked, "You got a spare computer lying around?"

The reaction was puzzling to McGee. There was a reason that Ray wanted him to look up that name. It occurred to him that Ray was trying to gain rapport by giving them information. It was unnecessary from his point of view, but considering how DiNozzo gave him the stink eye a few times… He pointed at Abby's desk where her other computer was.

Ray gave a nod and glanced at Abby and got her approval. He sat in the roller chair and slid into place and started typing. He didn't even flinch when Callisto walked over and planted herself between him and the door, her eyes focused on the door. Her ears were up and eyes forward despite the fact that she was lying down.

McGee and Abby watched the dog. She wasn't even distracted when they made noise. The only explanation they got was from Ray when he said, "She's a trained MWD and very protective of me. She knows when I start working on a computer, I zone out. Extra set of eyes." He looked at them from the corner of his eye and grinned.

It was enough to put everyone in a good mood and get back to work. For the next few hours it was quiet with the clacking of keyboard keys. It wasn't until Abby started powering down her babies for the night that McGee made a break through and that was after Gibbs came down to check on them, telling them to finish and leave it for the morning.

McGee had managed to piece together and come up with something and he revealed is discovery when he uttered, "Huh."

"Anything good, McGee?" Abby leaned over to see what he was looking at.

"It looks like Caldwell was sending pieces of information to Rawlings after an initial conversation regarding a test of some sort." McGee tapped a few keys and the files he had pasted themselves together. "Looks like a test of the nanites and results." He tapped a few more keys.

Abby studied the screen, "Huh. Looks like a lot of trader secrets or something." She frowned, "Is this why they were killed?"

"Proprietary tech, Abby," Ray called from his workstation.

McGee didn't say anything but managed to hum in agreement. He was still typing and working with file fragments. He spotted something else and pieced it together. "Looks like I've got part of another file. It looks like a set of blueprints, but I'm not sure what it is."

McGee and Abby were busy looking at the screen that they didn't realize that Ray had gotten up and taken a position behind them. He walked right by them and they didn't notice. They didn't even notice Callisto had gotten to her feet and moved to stand beside him. McGee was trying to put more together to get a better picture.

Ray watched as McGee worked and fingered the slip of paper in his hand. It was the name he had tried to give to McGee, but he ran with it. The findings were on Abby's computer. Right now he was focused on what McGee was pulling up. He had heard the word 'blueprints' and moved to see. That feeling that had always warning him of impending danger was starting to rear its head.

"There's a name here, but it's not…" McGee continued working to clear up the image. He frowned when he saw the name on the blueprints. It wasn't exactly a name but an alpha numeric designation. It was nothing he was familiar with. "DZ-8472?"

The sound of the elevator dinging caught their attention. McGee was the first to realize that Ray wasn't there. He called out, "Ray?"

Ray had left Abby's lab the moment he recognized what McGee had been piecing together. He didn't want to think it was so but Simkins' words from earlier had come to mind. He thought about them as he waited for the elevator to head back up to the bullpen where Gibbs was more than likely burning the midnight oil and DiNozzo and Ziva would be up there as well. It had him hesitate.

As much as he had been told to play as a team player, this was going to require him going solo. He changed his mind and walked away from the elevator and headed towards the stairs with Callisto in tow. He did pull out his phone and dialed a number and held it up to his ear. He waited until it was picked up and said, "We've got a problem."

A/N: Ray is in the dog house and it looks like it will continue to be that way now he saw what McGee found. Find out what happens next time on Operation Dead Zone...