Chapter 9 – Eighteenth Amendment

Tony DiNozzo

"Wow," Tony said as they entered the club. "Impressive."

Like most of the larger speakeasies, this one was located in the basement of a large building. Like the Tin Angel, this one was in a garment factory in an unassuming neighborhood but this one made men's trousers. The Tin Angel, on the other hand, was in a factory that made men's shirts.

From the interior of the club, he would never have suspected that they were in the basement of an industrial building. But the roughhewn brick walls and the heavy wood-plank ceiling were reminders that they weren't exactly in a fine building off DuPont Circle.

After entering the building, they had gone through a door cleverly camouflaged to look like the rest of the wall. That door led to a long set of stairs that led down to the club. The room was warmly lit and luxuriously adorned with burnt orange and crimson draperies and tied back with black sashes to soften the rough brick walls. In contrast, snowy white linens covered the tables that were sprinkled throughout the room and booths with padded seats lined the walls of the club.

A long wooden bar was located to their right. Behind it were shelves of liquor that stood on finely crafted wooden shelves in front of a burnished silver backdrop. Bartenders were busy filling orders for clients and a steady stream of waitresses that weaved their way through the tables. To their left, they saw a generous stage that was perhaps knee-high with an area for dancing just in front of it. The ample stage held a piano, a drum set, six chairs for the band and a standup microphone in the center of the stage.

With the club underground, it was significantly cooler than it was outside, although he'd be hard-pressed to say it was cold inside the club. But as they stepped further into the room, he realized that there were several industrial ceiling fans stirring up a nice breeze that made it more comfortable. Those fancy buildings off DuPont Circle didn't have ceiling fans like an industrial building like this.

"DiNozzo?" a familiar voice asked.

Turning around, he saw Gibbs walking towards the bar, empty glass in hand.

"Gibbs," Tony said repressing a grin as their boss changed direction to join them. It was the first time they had seen Gibbs in two months and he was surprised by how happy he was to see their boss.

"What brings you here?" Gibbs asked looking over Tim, keeping up the act that he didn't know McGee. But he knew that Gibbs was checking over Tim to make sure he was all right.

"Felt like a change of scenery," Tony replied. "Gibbs, this is Tim McGee. Tim, this is Gibbs, Napolitano's handy man."

"Jethro Gibbs. Nice to meet you," Gibbs said with only a hint of irony as he nodded at Tim. "So, what made you change venues? I thought you liked the Tin Angel?" Gibbs asked.

"We ran into an old friend from Baltimore. I might have mentioned Leon to you before?" Gibbs nodded. "He suggested that our usual spot might be a little crowded tonight," Tony replied as he looked at Gibbs meaningfully.

"I see," Gibbs replied.

"My pal here," he said as he roughly chucked Tim's shoulder much to his partner's annoyance. "Is a fan of hot music and I told him about the singer you were telling me about. So, we decided to check out this place. Never expected that we'd actually run into you."

"Came by for a drink," Gibbs replied as he held up his empty glass. "Was about to leave before it got too…" Gibbs searched for a diplomatic word. "Loud."

He glanced at the stage, the band was just starting to take their seats.

"Think I could temp you to stay for another and catch up?" he asked meaningfully.

A hint of smile tugged at the corner of Gibbs' mouth. "Yeah," Gibbs said. "If you're buying."

"Gibbs!" a voice said. They turned around and blinked in surprise. The source of the voice was quite shocking. The woman in front of them had her hair pulled up into two small knobs on each side of her head. This revealed dark makeup and a large spider web tattoo on the side of her neck.

He looked at his friend out of the corner of his eye. Tim was staring at the strange woman in a way that his friend rarely looked at a woman. In fact, he wasn't sure that he had ever seen his partner look at a woman like that. Tim wasn't leering at her, but he was certainly transfixed by her appearance.

Not that he blamed Tim. She was a looker.

She was dressed in a low-cut red and black beaded dress with a fringed skirt that revealed the long black lacy slip underneath. The dress hugged her body and accented her curves and red teardrop necklace hung just below her throat. He followed her long, black nylon-clad legs to the floor and noted a pair of red and black heels that matched her dress.

"You didn't say you were bringing friends tonight," she said sweetly which seemed to be in direct contrast with her clothing.

"I didn't bring them. They showed up on their own," Gibbs replied. "And I only know Tony."

"Tony DiNozzo," Tony said introducing himself.

"Abby Sciuto," she said. "Manager of Quicksilver. Who's the handsome guy catching flies and looking me up and down?" she asked as she eyed Tim up and down appreciatively.

He looked at his friend bemused. Tim wasn't usually the one to get caught staring at a girl.

Tim didn't reply so he smacked his friend on his arm to galvanize him. "You going to answer the girl McGee or are you just going to stare at her all right?"

Tim jolted and shut his mouth. "Timothy McGee," he said flushing slightly.

"Really?" she asked intrigued. "Gibbs, you know people in high places."

"I do?" Gibbs asked looking at Tim.

"Yeah," she said chucking Gibbs on the arm. "This is Timothy McGee, Mr. Napolitano's new financial expert."

Tim was shocked. She knew who he was? He looked at his partner in surprise then at Miss Sciuto. How on earth could she know who Tim was already?

"You're kidding, right?" Gibbs asked trying to cover for them. He was usually cool undercover, but this strange woman had even knocked him off kilter.

"Nope and from your reaction, I know I'm right," she said with a sly smile.

He glanced at Gibbs and realized that there was nothing they could say that would convince her that Tim wasn't Napolitano's accountant. Gibbs shrugged lightly, accepting it.

"How'd you know that? I thought that Napolitano's money man was a highly classified secret?" Tony said.

"It is," Abby said earnestly. "But the club's boiler has been acting up lately and the cost to repair it is more than I have available right now. I spoke to Mr. Napolitano about a small loan. According to him, as long as Mr. Thom E. Gemcity could free up some cash, I'd have my loan."

"Yeah but his name is McGee," he said jabbing his thumb in Tim's direction.

"I know," she replied. "It's an alias. Timothy McGee. Thom E. Gemcity." She leaned in towards Tim and whispered conspiratorially, "I'm really good at puzzles, Timmy."

Flabbergasted, Tim looked at him, but he couldn't find any words to respond to this strange woman either.

Suddenly she spun on her heel and said, "You three are my guests tonight." But no one moved. She paused and looked back at them. "Come on boys. Get the lead out!"

Jolting, they followed her to a plush booth and sat down. There was a minor scuffle as he forced Tim to sit next to Abby. Tim glared at him, but he could see that it was only half-hearted.

A waitress appeared a moment later.

"Drinks are on me tonight, boys. Gibbs can vouch for it; we have a fully stocked bar with the highest quality liquor so order anything you'd like," she said. "Michelle, I'll take a Sazerac."

"Bourbon, neat," Gibbs replied.

"Gin Rickey," Tony said.

"Uh, I'll take a Bacardi cocktail," Tim replied quickly.

"Coming right up," Michelle said with a smile.

"So, what brings you to my humble club?" Abby asked after Michelle had left.

Tim's tongue was still tied over the striking manager, so he took the initiative to explain. "I've heard that your house act is something to see," Tony replied.

Abby grinned. "Oh, she is. Just you wait," she replied. "And she can sing too," Abby added causing him to smile. "Since you're here on a school night, I hope you'll have some nice things to say about my club to Mr. Napolitano tomorrow, Mr. McGee."

"Tim," he replied hastily. "You can call me Tim and so far, that's the case," he said with a smile. Abby smiled brightly in return.

He looked at Gibbs who didn't share the smile. They could both see that Tim was smitten with this odd young woman. He had barely taken his eyes off her since they met. Unfortunately, they couldn't discuss the issue at the moment. He needed to warn his partner about getting mixed up with the manager of one of Napolitano's clubs. But the arrival of their drinks distracted him.

He sipped his drink and nodded appreciatively. The gin was good, and the bartender hadn't skimped on the liquor. So many of these clubs watered down their hooch to make an extra buck.

He paused and looked around. It was a little after eight and the club was already filling up nicely. If it continued at this pace, the club would be full within the hour and he wasn't surprised. The liquor was of good quality, the atmosphere was nice, and apparently, they had one hell of a show.

"You like what you see, Tim?" Abby asked.

"Yeah," Tim replied. He noticed his friend was looking intently at Miss Sciuto. "But I'm curious about the name. Did you name the club after the element, the Roman God or the planet?"

Abby smiled at Tim and he watched as his friend's heart fluttered. Damn, Tim was head over heels for this odd dame and they had only known each other for five minutes tops. "What do you think?"

Tim looked around again. "Well another name for quicksilver is mercury so it could be the element because of accents like the bar and the silver trappings. Or with the reds and oranges, you could be referencing the planet, which is closest to the sun and probably the hottest of the planets in our solar system. But it is also possible that you were referencing Mercury the Roman God of commerce and trade, which would be fitting for a business. Or it could be just because you liked the word."

"Those are all good reasons," she said. "Did you consider that I named it Quicksilver because mercury is poisonous and so is alcohol?"

"Come on, DiNozzo," Gibbs said quietly.

He nodded, and they quickly left the booth. He was pretty sure that neither Tim nor Abby noticed. They were completely enraptured with one another.

They settled at a table nearby just as the band began to play.

"You sure it's a good idea leaving those two together, Gibbs?" he asked, noting that the band was loud enough to cover their conversation.

"Abby and Tim?" Gibbs asked incredulously.

"You tell me," he countered. "You know Tim and you know Abby better than I do." Gibbs looked at Tim and Abby for a long moment. They were already deep in conversation. Gibbs looked at him meaningfully. "That's what I thought. I'll say something."

"Good luck getting a word in edgewise," Gibbs said wryly. Gibbs sipped his drink. "Leon Vance warned you about the Tin Angel?"

"Yeah," he replied as he sipped his drink. "Pretty sure that Morrow sent him to warn us that she was going to be raided. Good thing he did, we were going out for a drink tonight." Gibbs looked at him questioningly. "Tim had a rough week. I convinced him to go out for a drink to let off some steam."

"Something happen?" Gibbs asked. He glanced at his boss. Gibb's expression was neutral, but he heard the concern in his voice.

"He found evidence that one of Napolitano's employees was stealing," he replied. "The body turned up with a round to the head yesterday. Naps was pleased. Tim, not so much."

Gibbs frowned and glanced at Tim.

"He's holding up just fine, Gibbs," he said defensively.

"Wasn't suggesting he wasn't," Gibbs said slowly. "But I know he'd feel guilty even if he was just doing his job." Tony nodded. Gibbs knew Tim just as well as he did. "I know we just talked but it wasn't a long conversation. We didn't have time to cover two months."

"Not much has happened in two months," he replied. "Tim's been working as Jimmy's accountant and to break the codes," he said. "No luck on figuring out who the mole is though."

"I figured that much," Gibbs said. "You'd have tried harder to make contact before now."

"We talked about this, Gibbs," he said defensively. "We didn't want to push a meeting and risk raising suspicions."

Gibbs sipped his drink and nodded. "I know, DiNozzo."

The way Gibbs was looking at him, he knew that he was out of line. He took a deep breath and sipped his drink. Glancing at Tim, he noted his young partner was still deep in conversation with Abby.

"Sorry, Gibbs," he replied as he watched people dance to the lively music. "I guess I'm a bit defensive. Became a bit of a habit over these last two months." Gibbs nodded. "Especially since we've been on our own since Jimmy hired Tim."

Gibbs set his drink down. "You're doing fine."

He nodded. "Doesn't mean we wouldn't be doing better if we could work with our partner," he added as he finished his drink.

"If the Tin Angel did get raided tonight," Gibbs said as he finished his drink. "That could give you an excuse to come here more where our paths would cross."

"It'd be real nice if we could make this a regular thing," he said genuinely.

Gibbs nodded in agreement.

"Nice to see you too, DiNozzo," Gibbs said as a dark-haired woman stepped onto the stage.

Her hair was pulled up and held in place with sparkling hair clips. She had on a floor-length silk dress with beading on the bodice and pearl necklace at her throat. The crowd cheered and clapped for her but fell silent as she stepped up to the microphone.

He had to admit, Gibbs hadn't been pulling his leg when he had said Ms. David was good. She not only had a great voice, but she knew how to work a crowd. He kinda hoped that the Tin Angel had been raided if only to have another excuse to see Ms. David sing.

When she finished her first set, the band took over and the crowd started to dance again. He ordered another round and while Tim and Abby talked, he and Gibbs shared everything that had happened over the last two months.

Gibbs had mostly spent his time working for Napolitano and helping Abby fix up her club. He had heard grumblings about the up and coming mobster, La Grenouille who was snapping up independent clubs and other illicit businesses. So far, he hadn't put much pressure on Napolitano's network, but word was it was only a matter of time before the two clashed.

He listened with interest. Being on Tim's protection detail, he was removed from the street gossip. But given what Gibbs was saying, he decided to reach out to some old friends. If a turf war was brewing, he and Tim could find themselves on the front lines and he wanted as much forewarning as possible.

Between the drinks, the good music and seeing Gibbs for the first time in months, he found that he was enjoying himself. Tim and Abby were in a lively conversation, so his partner was feeling better. All in all, it was a good night.

But some five hours later, his enthusiasm had waned. The club was nearly empty except for a man passed out on one of the tables and a very involved couple necking in a booth. Tony sighed as he rubbed his eyes. Even Gibbs had gone home.

And yet, Tim and Abby were still talking in the same booth he and Gibbs had left them in hours ago.

He stood up and walked over to their table.

"Ok lover boy," Tony said not caring that he had interrupted Tim in the middle of a sentence. "Let's go."

"Huh?" Tim asked looking around. "We just got here. I haven't even heard Miss David sing yet."

"You missed her. Twice," Tony said as he looked at his watch. "We've been here five hours."

Tim looked around in shock. He then looked at his own watch. Evidently, he wasn't sure if he should believe it because he tapped the face of the watch.

"Yeah, it's really after one in the morning," he said grumpily even as Abby smiled. "And I'm sure Miss Sciuto would like to get some sleep. Just like I do, and you should too. You have to be at work in less than six hours."

"Right," Tim said. "Give me a minute." Tony nodded and stepped off to the side to give his partner his privacy but in the empty club, his voice still carried. "Wow. I don't know what happened to the time. I really should go."

"Are you going to come back again?" Abby asked.

"I think I have a reason or two to come back," Tim said. "I might even make it back tonight."

"I'll be looking for you," Abby replied with a pleased smile.

Smiling, Tim leaned forward and kissed Abby on the cheek. She smiled sweetly as he pulled back. "Can we offer you a lift home?" Tim asked.

"No," she replied. "That's sweet but I can manage." He watched as Tim started to protest. "I do this every night, Tim. I'll be fine. I don't live far."

Tim nodded, accepting her answer. "Until tonight then," he replied as he left. When Tim reached Tony, he rolled his eyes. "What?" Tim asked.

"You're grinning like an idiot," Tony replied as Abby called her security to give the drunken man the bum's rush before turning on the amorous couple telling them to go get a room. The abashed couple hastily gathered their belongings and bolted from the club, probably to take her up on her advice from the looks of things.

"Your point?" Tim asked as they made their way up the stairs. "I met someone nice."

"You met an odd duck, McGee," Tony said as they exited into the night air. The temperature had dropped but it was still warm out.

"So, she looks different," Tim retorted. "But she's one of the smartest people I've ever met. She has two degrees, Tony. Chemistry and mathematics. How many men do you know with even one of those degrees?"

"You have two degrees, McGee," Tony retorted. "Mechanical and electrical engineering."

"I know that but she's a woman and it's rare that a woman has one degree let alone two in a technical field," Tim retorted as they got into the car. "I'm coming back to see her again tonight."

"I'll make sure to catch up on my sleep during the day," he replied drolly as he started the car.

"I can't believe we spent so much time talking," Tim said half to himself. "And I missed Miss David?"

"Yeah," he replied as he pulled away from the curb.

"How was she?" Tim asked.

"Good," he said as he thought back to her singing. She was sultry, beautiful and mysterious. And he had never heard a voice like hers before. Just as Tim had been enraptured by the strange club manager, he had been entranced by Miss David. Either she was a great performer, or she had caught his eye during her first set. And during her last set, he could swear that she had been singing to him. "She was better than good," he amended. "She was better than advertised." He needed to find a way to meet the beautiful singer.

Tim sighed. "I'm sorry I missed it," he said.

"No, you're not," he replied as he glanced at his partner. He watched as small smile started at the corner of McGee's mouth.

"No, I'm not," Tim admitted. "I've never met anyone quite like Abby."

"Not surprising," he replied. "I've never seen a woman with a tattoo let along a tattoo of a spider web on her neck. Was she a sailor in another lifetime? Or maybe the spider means she's a black widow?"

"No," Tim replied defensively. "She's never been married. Tattooing is an ancient form of artwork. And just because she's a woman it doesn't mean she can't have one. Actually, they've found a number of female mummies in Egypt with all kinds of tattoos."

"Tattooed Egyptian mummies?" Tony asked incredulously.

"Yeah," Tim replied excitedly. "Some scholars think that they were talismans for a safe pregnancy and birth."

"So, you're saying that her spider web tattoo is a talisman for a safe pregnancy?" he asked. It didn't sound right even to his ears but at this hour of the night, it made as much sense as anything. "She has a kid? I thought you said she's never been married?"

Tim looked baffled. "No. She just likes spider webs," Tim replied.

He blinked in shock and shook his head to clear away his own cobwebs. "Seriously, McGee."

"I know," Tim said cutting Tony off. "I know what you're going to say."

"Do you?" he asked. "You're undercover. But that could change at any moment and then what? You'll both get hurt. Or even worse, she could out you to Napolitano if she makes you, then you'll be dead." Tim looked at him incredulously. "She ain't no dumb Dora. She figured out your alias in no time flat. You don't think she's capable of figuring out you're the law?" Tim nodded reluctantly in concession. "This woman makes a living operating an illegal club. She may not want to give that up for you or because of you."

"I know," Tim said with a sigh.

He glanced at his partner who was staring out the passenger window sullenly. He felt bad for Tim. They hadn't had much time to really meet anyone with their work. Well he had managed just fine, but Tim wasn't as smooth with the ladies. And besides, his young partner wasn't looking for a good time. He was looking for steady girl that maybe he could marry and have a family with.

He couldn't picture Miss Sciuto as the marrying type, but he couldn't deny that they had hit it off.

"Look," he said gently. "I'm not going to tell you not to keep seeing this woman," Tony said. "Because you obviously like her and I think she likes you." Tim looked at him hopefully. "And you deserve to be happy. But she manages an illegal club, Tim and you are an undercover federal agent. Things might not end well if you get dizzy with this dame."

Author's Note: So about the cocktails that everyone ordered. They're all Prohibition Era or older.

Abby ordered a Sazerac which originated in New Orleans, naturally. It was originally made with Cognac and absinthe but later became a whiskey cocktail when Cognac grapes were decimated by disease. It's a combination of rye whiskey, absinthe (or another anise flavored liquor after absinthe was banned) simple syrup, bitters and a lemon twist.

Tony ordered a Gin Rickey which is gin, lime and club soda. The Gin Rickey is the Capital's official cocktail and it was a favorite of journalists and politicians at the bar where it was invented (prior to Prohibition.)

Tim ordered a Bacardi Cocktail which is basically a daiquiri with a bit of grenadine (pomegranate simple syrup). It contains light rum, lime juice, grenadine and is shaken until cold and served over ice, which would be very refreshing during a heat wave.