Director Leon Vance and attorney M. Allison Hart sat at the table in the courtroom. She, thumbing through papers, and he, staring forlornly into space, were worlds apart where the case was concerned. In the first bench behind them sat Gibbs, Fornell, and Dr. Mallard, and in the bench behind them sat Abby, McGee, Ziva, and Ron Sachs. Even Palmer had taken the time to attend, but his arrival was later than the others and he sat closer to the rear of the room. Mrs. Vance was ominously absent.
As is supposed to be the way, Grand Juries are informal, except this one was anything but. Because of the high profile nature of the case, the District of Columbia implemented some little known rules to ensure not only the fairness of the evidence, but the safety of all parties involved. As a result, the proceedings were held in one of the larger, more modern court rooms, which was designed to hold media intensive inquiries. Also, it was deemed prudent to have the defendant on hand; after all, it was his lawyer, the pasty yet infamous J.E. Healey, who all but demanded a Grand Jury. Even though it was unlikely DaVoodi would be allowed to provide any rebuttal, he was granted the right to hear the evidence being brought against him. In an unprecedented move, the court allowed support for both sides to attend, which made it all feel like a trial instead of a preliminary hearing.
"I've never been to a Grand Jury like this," McGee said. "What do they hope to accomplish by all this hoopla?"
Fornell answered, "They're not hoping to accomplish anything, McGee; they're trying to prevent a lawsuit. One of the best ways to mitigate the inevitable defense counter suit is through a Grand Jury. Defense attorneys have grown to hate them for this reason."
"So why did DaVoodi's lawyer insist on having one?" Abby asked.
Sachs answered, "Because he knew he'd have an ace in the hole… The Director's children. And then his case wouldn't even go to trial."
"Seems a bit excessive," Ziva added, unable to hide her concern for her partner.
"A properly run Grand Jury can thwart more lawsuits than any other single act by the judicial system," Dr. Mallard added. "These particular proceedings may be unusual, but not unprecedented."
The judge hit his gavel before the good doctor could relay one of his many stories and called the court to order. "Ms. Hart, are you prepared today with your witnesses?"
"I am."
The judge looked at the defense attorney, perplexed that he didn't see the infamous Guido L. DaVoodi sitting there. "Mr. Healey? Your client does not have to be here; however, I understood that he wanted to be here."
"He does want to be here, Your Honor. And he is coming—"
The commotion at the rear of the courtroom interrupted his explanation and he turned around. As flamboyant as ever, his client entered. The tall, dark haired, slightly overweight Mafia Don was accustomed to being stared at, for he was a handsome man even at his age. Dressed immaculately in a dark tailored suit, DaVoodi walked down the center aisle. On his arm was a woman half his age, draped in a mink coat with diamonds and gems dripping from her body. He offered her a seat in the front row, forcing several others to move down. His smile was crooked as he made it a point to acknowledge his accuser, NCIS Director Leon Vance.
Judge Harris reprimanded the theatrics, "Counsel, please get your client under control. This may only be a Grand Jury, but I won't have anyone make a mockery of it!"
There was nothing the lawyer could do about his client, and pretty much everyone in the courtroom knew it, but he put forth a good effort, pulling the seat out and encouraging the crime boss towards it. Even seated, DaVoodi made a show of it by unbuttoning his jacket and leaning back, like he hadn't a care in the world.
Vance kept his composure, barely, by looking straight ahead, never giving the lowlife criminal the satisfaction of looking him in the eye. He kept thinking of his children, not being able to digest the thought that they were being held captive, or worse. He shook his head and blinked his eyes, forcing those images to go away.
Gibbs felt his gut churn as he glared at DaVoodi. These were dangerous times for the former marine sniper. He was never very good at dealing with his own feelings of revenge, and right now, the only way he was handling it was by not allowing himself to believe that anything had happened to Tony. He wouldn't let his mind go there, at least not until he saw, with his own eyes, his agent's body. And then heaven help the man responsible.
The judge brought the proceedings to order, "This Grand Jury is being held to determine whether or not there is sufficient evidence to indict Guido Louis DaVoodi for the murder of Matty T. Mancusi. This Grand Jury was requested by Guido Louis DaVoodi and permission was granted by the District of Columbia. The District of Columbia set forth the provisions of this hearing, and each of you has a copy at your table. The prosecutor will present evidence at this time for the record. The defense will have no means to respond. If the Grand Jury votes to prosecute, the defense can present evidence of innocence at the trial. Ms. Hart, are you ready with your evidence?"
She looked questionably at her client, then nodded, "Yes, we are ready."
The judge turned to the bailiff and he opened a side door and seventeen ordinary citizens filed in and sat down in the jury box.
When the last one seated himself, the judge looked at Ms. Hart and said, "Now then, please present your evidence to the jury."
After giving Leon Vance another reluctant stare, she stood and said, "I'd like the members of the jury to hear an eye witness account of the murder from Mr. Leon A. Vance, The Director of NCIS."
Vance felt all eyes on him. What was he going to say? Hart had tried to glean that information from him on their way over to the courthouse, but it soon became evident that he didn't even know what he was going to say. He was the Head of a Federal Agency, sworn to uphold the law under any circumstances; yet, he was also a father, wondering if he was ever going to see his children again. His mind knew that if DaVoodi had them, he'd never let them go alive, but his heart wanted to believe that he would, and they'd be delivered safely to him. That is, of course, if he ever had them in the first place.
"Director Vance?"
He pushed those thoughts aside and stood. As he made his way to the small chair next to the seventeen men and women who made up the grand jury, his pulse raced. A small bead of sweat broke out across his brow, and if he let it, his legs might have given out from under him. In the next few moments, was he going to seal the fate of his children, or let a cold blooded murderer walk free?
"Director," Ms. Hart began, "on the evening of May 23rd, where were you?"
"I was having dinner at Villa Cuchina in Georgetown."
"Were you alone?"
"No."
"Who was with you?"
"My wife. We were celebrating our wedding anniversary."
"Will you tell the jury what happened at that restaurant that night?"
For the first time, Vance looked over at the man who had murdered Mancuso. Could he let a murderer walk free? Would he? His stomach felt queasy and his head hurt. He took a shaky breath and began, "My wife and I arrived at Villa Cuchina restaurant in Georgetown at approximately 8:45pm. The restaurant was only about half full, and by the time our food arrived, the place was mostly empty. It was nice… quiet, and romantic..."
His voice trailed off, allowing his thoughts to go back to the moment before his life changed forever. He was at the top of his world, remembering looking at his wife, and thinking about telling her how much he loved her. But he wanted the moment to be perfect, and a party of two had just entered the room, and he had recognized one of the men as Matty Mancusso, one of several syndicate bosses. He had walked right by him on his way to his own table across the dining room.
"Director?"
Vance brought himself back to the present and looked at his attorney.
She repeated her question, "Did you recognize any of the patrons?"
He looked down at his hands, studying them, and nodded. "Yes. I recognized Matty Mancuso. He sat across the room with another man."
After a moment of silence, Ms. Hart prodded, "And what happened next?"
Vance stared at the floor. "We. I mean… My wife, Jackie, and I—"
He caught some movement out of the corner of his eye, and heard the commotion at the rear of the courtroom. At first, he didn't see anything. It was just the general disorder in the room that alerted him that something unusual was happening.
And then he saw them.
Kayla, Jared and Tony stood just inside the door. Gibbs was the first to look behind him and see them. One by one, the people seated turned and stared. The three of them were a sight to behold. Tony applied pressure to the back of Jared's neck and they walked slowly down the center aisle, with Kayla holding onto his side. It was Jared who saw his father first and exclaimed, "Dad!"
Vance blinked his eyes in disbelief. "Jared?"
The boy broke and ran to his dad's outstretched arms. Kayla followed, smiling and throwing her arms around her dad's neck.
The relief that washed over Tony was visible. Abby watched him sway and reached out for him at the same time Gibbs did. "Hey," she soothed, as she felt his weight lean into her. Fortunately, Gibbs took a hold of his arm and steadied him, "Sit down." Gibbs guided him into the space next to him, looking him over as he helped him down.
DaVoodi had turned pale. When he saw the children, he was initially shocked. Then he leaned over to his attorney and was demanding something, but his attorney wasn't looking too agreeable.
Judge Harris hit his gavel several times and declared, "This court will come to order! Ms. Hart! What's the meaning of this?"
M. Allison Hart smiled, tossed a sideways glance at the angry Mafia boss, and said, "I think we're ready to hear ALL the evidence against Mr. DaVoodi, Your Honor."
After the judge ordered the testimony to continue, Vance let go of his children and said, "Go sit with Ms. Hart at the table there. When I'm done, I'll take you to see your mother."
Allison smiled warmly at the children, but they walked past her.
Instead, Kayla and Jared went straight to Tony and squeezed in beside him, forcing Gibbs, Fornell and Mallard to scoot down again. Although Tony didn't seem to mind, it was evident that he was in considerable pain.
He draped his only good arm around Jared, comforting the boy as he usually did, while Kayla rested her head on his shoulder, snuggling as close to him as a person could get.
The image brought a smile to Ziva's lips and she nudged McGee. It was a rare sight indeed. But Gibbs didn't notice it. What he did notice was the bead of sweat glistening off his agent's face, the blood stained shirt, and the tight cradling of his arm against his body. Combine that with periodic wincing and rapid, shallow breathing, and maybe it was time to call an ambulance.
But Tony only glared at DaVoodi, almost daring him to look back at him. No, an ambulance would have to wait. He wasn't going to deprive his agent of seeing the charges brought against one of the most notorious mafia kingpins of the time.
After relaying a graphic and detailed account of the murder of Mancuso that took place in front of him by DaVoodi in the restaurant, Vance stood up and gave the Mafia boss one last smirk, lasting at least ten seconds. The courtroom was silent, and the woman, who had been escorted into the room by DaVoodi, was noticeably shaken. Her sugar daddy was about to be charged with a crime that there would be no coming back from. She was going to have to find her money elsewhere.
The only thing that could describe the expression on Healey's face was fear. He tried to ease the gravity of the situation, but his client wasn't listening and the lawyer had been reduced to babbling. Instead of being in the best possible way to avoid a trial, he was now in the worst possible way, all but waiting for the Grand Jury to return its inevitable verdict. And since the testimony was graphic, detailed, and particularly cold blooded, and since the source of it was delivered by the head of a Federal Law Enforcement Agency, DaVoodi knew better than anyone what it all meant.
Within minutes, the jury returned and said there was enough evidence to bring murder charges against Guido Louis DaVoodi. The judge ordered him held without bond, and he was handcuffed and escorted away. The last thing Gibbs heard his lawyer saying was, "I'll send an appeal today to get the bond reversed. I'll have you out by tomorrow, Mr. DaVoodi!"
As the courtroom cleared, Vance hurried back to his children, picking up Jared in his arms and hugging him, and then hugging Kayla and kissing the top of her head. Finally, he landed on DiNozzo.
"I don't know how to thank you, Agent DiNozzo."
Tony wasn't fully aware of his surroundings. Vance seemed to be talking to him, but it was anyone's guess as to what he was saying. He heard Gibbs ask for an ambulance and he felt pressure on his arms. They were helping him stand and guiding him down the aisle towards the door. He watched the children leave with Vance, and he remembered hearing something about seeing their mother, but other than that, he let himself be led away. It felt good to let someone else take control.
"We can take him to the lawyer's lounge."
As Tony limped down the hallway, the hairs on the back of his neck tingled, and he stopped.
"Tony?" Gibbs asked. "What's wrong?"
Tony bit his lip, and stared straight ahead. Through the lawyers, clerks, messengers, and clients, he saw him. Just when he thought he could relax, no amount of pressure being applied to his arm was going to get him to take another step forward.
Confused, Gibbs felt his agent tense up, and take a step backwards. His eyes flickered down the hallway, and Gibbs wondered what in the hell was going through his agent's head. "It's okay, Tony. You're safe now."
Ziva tried to encourage him too, "Just a little bit further, Tony, and you can sit down until the ambulance comes."
McGee continued, "I can get you a chair if you don't think you can make it?"
But Tony wasn't interested in what they were saying. He only had eyes for the well dressed man walking towards him, and thoughts of surviving.
Confused by his hesitation, Gibbs was actually holding onto Tony's arm keeping him from backing away, and McGee stepped behind him, preventing him from backpeddling any more.
"What's wrong?" Abby asked.
Finally, Gibbs saw the reason for Tony's behavior. Testidori was walking straight towards them. But if he had any ideas of harming anyone, he was concealing it well. He hands were up, palms out, signaling that he was unarmed. Gibbs stepped in front of Tony, as did Fornel and Sachs, while Ziva and McGee steadied him.
"What do you want?" Gibbs toned.
"I come in peace. I am unarmed and I have not brought anyone with me. But rest assured, if I don't walk out of here as easily as I walked in, I've left specific instructions with several of my associates."
The thinly veiled threat was not lost on his audience, and Gibbs sized him up, considering his words. If nothing else, he was a man who lived by a code.
"I've come to talk to your agent. I'll be brief."
Gibbs considered the request but the decision was made for him when Tony inched his way forward, no doubt curious about what the man had to say.
"Agent DiNozzo, I've come to congratulate on you a pursuit worthy of my talents. And I've come to offer you a job."
"What?" Fornell said before he could hold his tongue.
Testidori smiled at the lapse in control and continued, "Before coming up against you, I was batting a thousand. I could guarantee my clients 100% satisfaction on a job… that is, until DaVoodi hired me to kidnap those children. In this business, it's 100% or it's nothing. Thanks to you, I have a black mark against my name now, so getting business in my line of work is still fairly easy, but the money's not there anymore. And that's where you come in.
"You think like me; you are but one thin line away from being a criminal yourself. You're the first target I've come across that left a path of destruction more devastating than me. You, alone, killed five of my men. They were good men too, the best. I figure you sort of owe me, and since you've demonstrated that you're really closer to being on this side of the law than that side, we could forge an alliance. The money's more than you could possibly imagine, and the perks—the women, the power, and the prestige—are more than I can describe.
Testidori paused long enough to appreciate their dropped jaws and stunned silence.
Smiling, he continued, "I know you can't give me an answer right now. You probably won't give me an answer any time soon, but the day will come when your government bureaucracy will tear at you, and eventually you'll get fed up playing the game. That's when you'll contact me. Think about, Anthony, you and me together. There'd be no stopping us."
With that, he smiled cordially at his audience. He turned to leave, but Tony's voice stopped him.
"Four."
Turning back, he furrowed his brow and said, "What?"
"Four."
"Four what?"
"Four men. You said I killed five of your men." He pushed his good hand into his pocket and pulled out some keys. "One of 'em is stuffed in my trunk." He tossed the keys through the air and Testidori caught them.
"And for the record, I'm nothing like you," Tony said, almost in a whisper. Even given his current physical condition, Tony could still sends chills down someone's spine with just his words.
Chapter Break
Gibbs sat in the hospital waiting room, alone. He kept replaying the conversation over in his head. Tony had a bad side to him, and at some point, Tony just might entertain Testidori's offer. He knew this because at one time in his own life, he would have entertained such an offer. It was hell to be flawed.
"Am I interrupting?"
Gibbs hadn't noticed his Director entering the room and shook his head, "No. Just thinking."
"I heard about Testidori's offer. You gotta hand it to him, he knows talent when he sees it."
"Yeah."
"I guess I should rethink my position."
Gibbs raised a brow.
"I once said our agents should look more like McGee than DiNozzo. I think I was wrong."
"Well, there's a place for both of them."
Vance shrugged, realizing Gibbs was more political then he gave himself credit for. "The kids have been bugging me about visiting Agent DiNozzo. Jackie's bringing them over soon. Is he up for it?"
"He's doing better. They took him off all the tubes and monitors last night. Now, all he wants to do is get out of here."
"I hear that. Why aren't you in there with him?"
"He's sleeping."
"Are we interrupting?" Abby asked.
"Not at all," the Director replied.
"Good. I can't wait to see Tony and tell him about Sister Rosita."
Behind her the rest of the team followed. Ziva offered, "If I know Tony, he's going to want to leave here soon. I think he should stay with one of us."
Abby smiled and shared a wink with Dr. Mallard.
Being somewhat obtuse at times, McGee said, "He can stay with me. I have plenty of room."
"He can stay with us," Jackie said, entering the room with Kayla and Jared.
"Can he?!" Jared exclaimed. "He's gonna teach me how to shoot a three pointer!"
An unfamiliar voice said, "Agent Gibbs?"
Abby and McGee stepped aside to allow the doctor to come further into the waiting room. Gibbs stood and answered, "Yeah."
"I wanted to update you on Agent DiNozzo's progress." He looked at the gathering of people and tried to put faces to the fantastic story he'd heard in the doctor's lounge. "Can we talk in private?"
Gibbs looked at the many expectant eyes and said, "You can talk in front of them."
The doctor gave them one final look, and then began, "Okay. Agent DiNozzo's doing remarkable well, considering how he came to us. His wounds are healing, as are his bones. He has several cracked ribs and a broken clavicle. Whoever removed the bullet did a fairly decent job… won't leave too much of a scar."
Jared and Kayla stole a glance at each other.
"The only thing that is still worrisome is his fever. It broke yesterday, but returned this morning. Otherwise, he's doing well."
"What's the fever mean?"
"There's still a minor infection going on somewhere inside of him. We've upped the antibiotics in his IV and we believe that a day's worth of that should be sufficient. We'll have to keep him one more day, even though I know he's chomping at the bit to get out of here. But who isn't."
"Can we see him?"
"I don't see why not, but keep it to family, just a few at a time."
A nod sent the doctor on his way and Gibbs walked out of the waiting room and down the hall. He'd do his usual and let them figure out who would visit and who would wait outside.
Tony was bantering with an attractive nurse when Gibbs entered and he couldn't help but smile. Yeah, he was getting better.
"Hey, Boss. I think they're gonna let me go home today."
"I don't think so, DiNozzo. I think you have another day."
Tony winked at the nurse and said, "I have an ally on the inside now, right Nurse Hammond?"
She winked and turned, but stopped when she saw the number of people trying to fit into the room. It was a private room, but still a hospital room. Before she could protest, Gibbs lied, "The doctor said it was okay."
Tony looked at everyone and said, "Wow, all we need now is Fornell and Slacks, and we'll have a full house."
"They're coming," McGee said. "I just got off the phone with Agent Sachs and they'll be here shortly."
"Tony!" Jared yelled after managing to squeeze through the adults.
"Hey Buddy!"
The boy catapulted himself onto the bed, sending Tony into a painful grimace.
"Jared!" Jackie cried, "Get off him, right now!"
But Tony had already maneuvered him off his legs and let him sit cross legged next to him. Besides, Kayla was already sitting on the other side of him, talking. "The doctor said I did a really good job getting that bullet out!"
Tony paled slightly at the comment.
"What?" Jackie said, looking at her husband for an explanation that wasn't coming. Then to anyone else, but their looks were as blank as hers. Tony rubbed a hand over his face.
"Yeah," Jared added, pulling the slug from his pocket. "I still have it."
"Uh, you can put that away now," Tony stammered. "I don't think anyone is interested in that," he quickly added while patting the boy's hands, covering the evidence.
Jackie asked, "What's that you have in your fingers, Jared?"
"Nothing!" Tony replied, a little too fast. "Hey, anyone bring a pizza? I'm starving!"
Jared held up his hand so they could see the slug. "You should have seen it, Mom. Kayla did surgery on Tony! She did a real good job, too!"
Beaming, Kayla nodded, "It was easy. I just followed the instructions that Tony gave me. He's a real good teacher. He told me how to start a car by just touching a couple wires together too!"
Tony inhaled, eyes wide, and swallowed, wondering how the Director of NCIS was going to take the news that his little girl had hot-wired a car. More importantly, how was his wife going to take it?
In disbelief, Jackie asked, "You did what?"
"I operated on him, and started a truck without a key," she answered.
But before she could elaborate, Jared added, "That was nothing, Mom! You should have seen her driving the car! She drove all over the place! She only went off the road a couple of times!"
Tony felt like he couldn't breathe. He thought about feigning a heart attack, but in his condition, they just might actually shock him. "Hey, guys," he whispered, "you're digging my grave here. I thought we agreed that we weren't going to mention some of these things."
"I didn't mention picking the lock to the motel room," Jared whispered, although not very low.
"Shhh," Kayla admonished, "that was supposed to be a secret." Taking command, she faced her mother and father and said, "Tony made sure that we knew that breaking into a motel room and sneaking into a theatre were bad things to do."
Tony didn't see the suppressed laughter otherwise he might have appreciated the humor. But at the moment, all he could think about was what his director was going to do to him, and he dropped his head back into his pillow. Agent Afloat? Evidence clerk? Maybe death by electrocution wasn't such a bad idea after all.
"Tony? Tony?" Jared said, shaking the man alert again. "Are you okay?"
Tony looked into the big eyes behind the dark rimmed glasses. "Yeah, I'm okay. I was just hoping to break the news of our escapades to your parents slowly, that's all."
Jackie Vance inched her way closer to him and leaned over his bed. She gently cupped his face and turned his head slowly to face her, ever mindful of his physical condition. Gently and soothingly, she whispered, "You brought my children back to me safely. There's nothing that they can say or do that would change my opinion of you. You are my hero, and always will be." She kissed him lightly on the side of his cheek, and seeing his eyes grow weary, she lifted her son off the edge of the bed. Kayla slipped off too and soon the visitors were realizing there was a reason why Tony was still in the hospital; he needed his rest.
When the room was all but clear of Gibbs, Ziva and McGee, Tony lulled his head over to better see them. "I swear I'm not like Testidori."
Gibbs patted his leg and replied, "Someday DiNozzo, I want to hear more about this run you had with Vance's children."
McGee added, "I'd bet it'd make a good movie."
Ziva winked, "I bet it already is a movie."
But the comments were lost on their colleague as he was already asleep. Gibbs ticked his head and the three vacated his room.
Outside, Kayla was regaling the group with some of the details of their journey. From the looks of everyone, they were enjoying every minute. As they listened, it soon became evident that there was a whole new side of their colleague that none of them was aware. There was a lot more to Anthony DiNozzo, Jr. than anyone realized.
Only Gibbs worried what an offer like Testidori's could do to a man like Tony. And his gut churned at the thought of it. There was a conversation that had to be had with his senior field agent, but it would have to be sometime in the future, on his sofa over a couple of flame broiled steaks and a brew.
~Fini
Thanks to everyone who read and commented. I really do appreciate all the feedback and helpful hints that came my way. Stay tuned... I'm in the throes of several stories and hope to post something soon. ~Jasmine