-we're getting word of increased Soviet and East German military activity near the U.N. checkpoints in and out of West Berlin-
-contradictory reports regarding a possible KGB raid on the BBC's bureau office in Moscow-
-all cars racing this week here in Charlotte leading into Saturday's Grand National 300 and Sunday's NASCAR 600 races will have Old Glory on their hoods. There also will be a special anti-Communist decal on the #3 car of none other than-
Washington
Fornell and Gibbs headed back to the Navy Yard, taking note of the unmarked FBI cars following them, and the cars that weren't.
"McCallister's men got made so he called 'em off," Gibbs said, as Fornell's car got in the line going into the Navy Yard complex. "If the Bureau thinks he's Jenny's killer, why hasn't it brought him in by now?"
"I can't talk about some Bureau business, Jethro."
"Tobias..."
"He's been on our radar for awhile now."
"'Awhile'?! How long is 'awhile', Tobias?"
"At least a few months, going back before his job in your agency's special ops program," Fornell said. "The guy's slippery, Jethro. You've never met him before?"
"Yeah, briefly, after I joined NCIS. The man was real proud of himself for being right about the Russians, let everyone know about it. Never thought he was more than an ass, though."
The line began moving suddenly, and Fornell and Gibbs could see the shack, guards and dogs.
"What do you think about the man now?" Fornell asked.
"That he found a hell of a way to get a promotion."
"Jethro...be REAL careful. You and your people. This guy's making Ari look like Santa Claus."
After the guards did a cursory search of the car, Gibbs got out of the car in the parking lot. He entered the NCIS building, walking onto and off the elevator with a pair of suits who didn't say a word to him. He quickly looked around the floor, counting the number of suits on the floor and looking for anything else out of place.
Gibbs headed to his desk, which got his team's attention. He went to McGee and had him pull up Jenny's mugshot and put it up on both monitors - which got everyone else's attention.
"You have anything to give me?" Gibbs barked.
"Uh, boss-"
"No, Gibbs."
"Not yet, Gibbs."
"Abby's still working-"
"OH GOD."
Everyone turned towards the woman from accounting standing in the aisle of the row of desks alongside the bullpen. A crowd of NCIS personnel had gathered around her, all looking at Jenny's photo.
And, each of the suits were moving in towards the bullpen.
"Is it true? That Director Shepard died?" asked another man. Everyone around him began asking questions, and within moments those questions descended into a frantic cacophony. The team was taken aback by their intensity.
Gibbs calmly got onto his desk and twice made an ear-shattering whistle. The second one - and his well-known and much-feared glare - got the crowd's attention.
"We are pursuing a murder investigation and the subject is Director Shepard," Gibbs shouted, so that everyone on the floor would have no doubt what he was saying. "My team's investigation is ongoing and we are to be left alone to conduct it. This includes myself. Any and all updates will come through the proper channels. For now, this is all that will be said on the subject."
Gibbs stepped down from his chair and turned towards the monitor, then quickly turned back to the crowd. With another glare, the crowd scattered back to their work areas.
As Gibbs turned back to his team, he noticed the suits moving back to their positions, and that one of them was on her phone. "You have ANYthing for me?" he said.
Kate was the first to speak up. "Abby's still tracking the brass found at the scene."
McGee was next. "I'm waiting on all of the footage from the park and the street."
Ziva spoke up. "Ducky and Palmer are still conducting the autopsy."
Gibbs turned to Tony, who looked around at the various suits, all staring at them. Then Tony felt one of his boss's headslaps.
"DiNozzo!"
"Car's in the garage," Tony said, then resumed looking at the suits.
"DiNozzo, you got something else for me?"
Tony turned back to Gibbs. "Look around. Dozens of them downstairs when McCallister debriefed us, dozens up here now. One's been staring a hole through Kate since you left. Abby's got two, Ducky's got two more. They haven't gone to the head with us - YET - but it's almost like we're prisoners in our own building."
Gibbs looked around, noting that almost every suit was looking their way. The one who wasn't - the woman with the phone - had moved closer, and seemed to be staring at Kate. When he caught the woman's eye, she began backing away, taking out her phone to make another call.
"Watch her," Gibbs said to his team after glancing at Kate. As he headed towards the woman, Tony yelled for him.
An exasperated Gibbs turned around. "Boss. The director wants to talk to you."
The former Marine gave the woman one last glare - she returned it with a smirk - before turning back towards the bullpen, where he picked up his phone.
"Gibbs."
"Your damn file suggested you were a pain in the ass, Gibbs," said McCallister on the other line. "It confirms what I suspected that time we met when this agency was still NIS."
"I can be," Gibbs replied, "especially when my people and I are being watched."
"Security, Gibbs. They're for your protection."
"Protection, Director? Since when do federal agents need to be protected while doing their jobs?"
Kate moved a little closer to Gibbs as the woman began to approach them, again.
"You'll need them. There are things in play you have no idea about."
"Have an idea about one of your people and a potential threat to my team, and one of my agents in particular," Gibbs said as he glared at the woman. "I don't take well to threats from anyone."
"Or so I hear. I've read up on you, Gibbs. Last year, when Haswari abducted Officer David and assaulted Agent Todd and nearly killed Agent DiNozzo. You left him a present."
"ATTEMPTED assault...and yeah, Director, I left him a 'present'. I'm sure he remembers it every time it rains, or he goes jogging."
"Are you about to do something that's gonna cost me a ton of paperwork and my agency's best agent, Gibbs?"
"Don't like predators, Director," Gibbs said, causing the woman to freeze in her tracks. "Ask Ari how I handle predators. Or Kyle Boone."
Tony jumped right in front of her, pistol in hand, and Ziva, McGee and Kate had their own weapons drawn. The other suits, looking on, had their hands on their weapons, while the regular workers were frozen in their chairs or hiding under their desks.
"One of them defected to the Soviets and the other's dead," McCallister said. "I really don't want to see a shootout downstairs, Gibbs."
"Downstairs?" Gibbs said, before listening to McCallister talk to someone else. Gibbs didn't understand the mumble, but he quickly saw for himself what the new director must have said.
Two suits sprinted towards the woman, grabbing her arms and handcuffing her. Moments later, Gibbs looked up and saw McCallister himself at the top of the stairs, looking down at them all before he announced himself.